A federal judge on Wednesday sentenced an ex-San Diego State University police sergeant to nearly four years in federal prison for possessing child sexual abuse material while he was still a campus law enforcement officer, according to federal prosecutors in Los Angeles.<\/p>\n
Paul Aurelio McClain, 47, pleaded guilty in March<\/a>\u00a0to a single federal charge, admitting in his plea agreement that he possessed more than 600 photos and videos depicting child pornography, according to court documents. He also admitted in his plea that he knowingly possessed images showing victims who were under 12 years old.<\/p>\n McClain, who lived in the Riverside County city of Menifee, was prosecuted in the Central District of California and sentenced by Los Angeles-area U.S. District Judge Sherilyn Peace Garnett to three years and 10 months in prison. She also ordered McClain to be placed on 20 years of supervised release upon finishing his federal prison sentence.<\/p>\n The judge also ordered McClain to pay more than $22,000 in what are essentially fines, including $17,000 to a fund that assists victims who appeared in child sexual abuse material, prosecutors said in a statement.<\/p>\n Prosecutors wrote in sentencing documents that McClain\u2019s actions were abhorrent and indefensible on their own, but even more \u201cdisturbing and unacceptable\u201d given his job.<\/p>\n \u201cDefendant\u2019s conduct is especially egregious given the types of child pornography that he possessed,\u201d prosecutors wrote. \u201cDefendant possessed images involving prepubescent children and children with an intellectual disability.\u201d<\/p>\n In defense sentencing documents, McClain\u2019s court-appointed attorney argued there was no evidence that one of the victims was intellectually disabled, apart from the title of one video and the \u201csubjective observation\u201d of a probation officer.<\/p>\n The defense attorney, who did not respond to a message seeking comment, also argued in sentencing documents that McClain\u2019s crime should not negate that for much of his 47 years, including 24 years as a police officer, \u201che has lived a life of purpose and of service.\u201d<\/p>\n According to court documents, an agent with Homeland Security Investigations was conducting an undercover operation on an online peer-to-peer sharing service when the agent was able to download child sexual abuse material from a host computer that investigators later determined was McClain\u2019s<\/a>.<\/p>\n