Connellsville man faces trial for sharing child porn

Charges against Justin Joseph Porterfield, 19, of Connellsville, who allegedly had more than 200 images of child pornography on his computer, were waived to Fayette County Court.

Porterfield was charged with dissemination and possession of child pornography. His hearing was scheduled Thursday before District Judge Ronald Haggerty Jr.

During an online Internet investigation in March to identify people possessing and sharing child pornography, investigators found a computer that was sharing 183 files, three of which previously were identified as child pornography. In addition, three of the shared files viewed were found to contain images of children younger than 18 engaged in sexual acts or poses.

On April 6, the state police Southwest Computer Crime Task Force served a search warrant at Porterfield's residence, where he was interviewed by Trooper Donald Lucas.

In an affidavit of probable cause, Lucas stated that Porterfield admitted to downloading child pornography on the computer, which was seized. A forensic examination revealed approximately 231 images and more than 35 videos of child pornography.

Porterfield is scheduled to appear Oct. 21 at Fayette County Courthouse.