Leesburg man sentenced for child pornography charges
By Jana Wagoner
A 40-year-old Leesburg man was sentenced in Loudoun County Circuit Court Oct. 3 to serve three years in prison for several child pornography-related charges.
Michael E. Highfield, 40, pleaded guilty April 22 to three counts of possession of child pornography and one count of manufacturing child pornography.
On Friday, Judge Thomas D. Horne sentenced him to two years in prison on each of the possession counts and five years in prison on the manufacturing count, for a total of 11 years, but he suspended all but three years of the sentence.
When Highfield is released, he will be under intense supervised probation for six months and have no contact with minors, including his own children, until otherwise authorized by the court, Horne ruled.
When arguing for probation instead of a prison sentence, Highfield's attorney, Frank Salvato, said his client voluntarily sought treatment shortly after his 2006 arrest and is no longer a threat to the community according to two professional therapists who evaluated him.
Salvato added that the overwhelming majority of the pornography found on Highfield's computer was of adults and only 5 percent to 10 percent was of children.
The manufacturing charge stemmed from Highfield's downloading of a video that contained child pornography – he did not actually film child pornography, Salvato said.
“This is his absolute first offense coming before the court in any way, shape or form,” Salvato said, adding that the illegal acts took place several years ago, when Highfield was having a rough time due to a divorce.
In her closing argument, Assistant Commonwealth's Attorney Nicole Wittmann called Highfield a “disgusting person who is 100 percent driven by sex.” She said he often neglected the cries of his young child while he was engrossed in pornography.
Wittmann described the movies on Highfield's computer as having girls younger than 10 performing explicit acts on grown men.
“This is someone who is a danger to children,” she said.
Just before he was sentenced, Highfield expressed remorse for his crimes.
“I just want to apologize and let the court know I am sorry for my actions,” he said, adding that those actions were “inexcusable and immoral.”
He said, “I know for sure this is something I'll never do again.”
He also said he understands he has an addiction and knows he must stay in treatment to deal with it.
When asked by Horne if he understood who were the victims of his crimes, Highfield said, “The children are, because it's not something where they can comprehend what they are doing.”
He said he realized he was furthering that victimization.
Horne said he thinks Highfield will be OK on probation with assistance from doctors, but the length of the sentence had to “indicate the disgusting nature” of the crimes.
Highfield's parents were in the court during sentencing.
“You're very very fortunate to have a family that is so supportive of you,” Horne said to him, adding that in many cases, when someone is convicted of a crime, his or her family and friends discontinue all contact.
Highfield was indicted in October 2007 on the charges.
The Leesburg Police Department conducted the investigation that found him in possession of the child pornography. The dates highlighted in the indictment when Highfield knowingly possessed the illegal material are on or about Feb. 10, 2006.