OPINION|
At a sentencing hearing in Springfield Oct. 12, U.S. District Court Judge M. Douglas Harpool tried to measure evil.
Standing before Harpool was defendant Gordon Wesley Roughton II.
His hands were cuffed. He wore a jail jumpsuit with horizontal stripes in shades of light gray and dark gray.
It was Judgment Day. Roughton faced 15 years to 30 years in federal prison. It was up to Harpool to decide.
Roughton pleaded guilty Sept. 22 to the sexual exploitation of a child.
“I have to be honest that I do not understand,” Harpool, 67, said from the bench. “I can not comprehend anyone's sexual interest in children.
“In this job, I have had occasion to have to look at child pornography as evidence and I would do anything I could not to have to look at it. The fact that people congregate in chat rooms is astonishing to me.
“It's a level of darkness in society I cannot comprehend.”
Defendant says he had to submit photos of his own
Roughton had confessed to taking four photos on June 9, 2021, of a 2-year-old girl.
The photos show her vagina. In two of them, you can see adult hands spreading her legs.
On that same day, he uploaded the photos to a chat group focused on child pornography.
The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children alerted southwest Missouri law enforcement agents to the photos on June 15, 2021. Police quickly obtained a search warrant and on June 16 arrested Roughton at his Springfield home.
Roughton told police that one of the rules of the child pornography chat group was that he needed to provide pics of his own if he wanted to continue to view pictures posted by others.
The toddler Roughton photographed was a foster child in his and his wife’s care. His wife was not charged and knew nothing of the photos.
In fact, the couple had taken preliminary steps to adopt the little girl. She was the 12th child the couple had fostered. The couple has children of their own, as well.
On the day Roughton was arrested, the 2-year-old was removed from the house and placed back in the care of the Missouri Division of Children's Services.
‘Would it have been worse if it was his own child?'
In the federal courtroom, Roughton chose to speak to Harpool.
“I want to apologize to (name redacted),” Roughton said in court. “She didn't deserve it. And I hope she is happy, healthy and loved.” (The Hauxeda redacted the victim's name.)
Harpool said he was particularly troubled by the fact the girl was a foster child.
The judge asked Roughton's attorney, Travis Poindexter, “Does that make this crime worse?”
Poindexter responded that the sexual exploitation of a child is always horrible.
“But would it have been worse if it was his own child?” Poindexter asked. “Would it have been worse if it was a stranger, a child he found at a gas station?”
Harpool also said the crime seemed particularly heinous because of the girl's age.
“She was not capable of telling on you,” Harpool told the defendant.
“Would it have been better if it had been a 12-year-old?” Poindexter asked.
‘Not dealing with a monster here, judge'
In the harsh continuum of how a child can be sexually exploited, Poindexter countered, what happened in this case — four photos posted to a chat group — should not be considered “the worst.”
“Was this a case of 4,000 pictures? No.
“Was it a case of 400 pictures? No.
“Was it a case of 40 pictures? No.”
Poindexter contended that a sentence of 15 years for Roughton should be “more than sufficient.”
There was no evidence Roughton touched the girl sexually and no evidence he had sexually exploited children in the past.
“Never,” Poindexter said. “You are not dealing with a monster here, judge.”
Law enforcement agents found no other images of child pornography on Roughton's electronic devices. The defendant had no criminal record.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Ami Miller agreed there was no evidence of other images or prior criminal conduct. However, she emphasized that the victim was a foster child in Roughton's care.
“A foster child is already vulnerable,” she said.
She recommended a sentence of 25 years.
He'd been interested in children since his mid-20s
Roughton's LinkedIn profile states he was a science teacher at Fordland High School, but it is not certain if he ever started that job prior to his arrest.
It also states he was a substitute teacher in Ash Grove, at Springfield Catholic schools and worked as a substitute teacher through Penmac Staffing.
In addition, it states he was a bus driver for Springfield Catholic Schools, the Springfield-Greene County Park Board and Springfield Public Schools.
Roughton, 42, told investigators that he has had a sexual interest in children since he was in his mid-20s.
Prosecutor Miller offered this advice:
“Maybe get out of the business of being a teacher. Maybe get out of the business of being a bus driver. Maybe get out of the business of being a foster parent.”
Is it an evil? A demon? A perversion? A sickness?
None of that should matter, defense lawyer Poindexter argued. The only thing under consideration on Thursday, he suggested to the judge, is this one case and this one charge.
“You can speculate on things, but one thing we don't do here is punish people based on speculation,” Poindexter said.
Harpool addressed the defendant.
“You have a clean record. You have a family that is supportive. You have done positive things with your life.
“You had this — I never know how to describe it — an evil, a demon, a perversion, a sickness, an illness, whatever it is.”
Harpool pointed out to Roughton that for some 20 years Roughton was viewing child pornography and not once did he seek help or treatment.
Roughton addressed his family.
“You don't deserve anything I have brought upon you[…] I will do everything I can to be a person you can be proud of from this day forward.
Roughton told Harpool, “There's nothing I can do to make up for the damage I have caused[…] I will do everything in my power to never be in this position again[…] I promise you that upon my release I will live a good and honorable life for the rest of my life.”
The sentence?
Seventeen years without the possibility of parole, with placement in a sex offender program — to be followed by 15 years of supervised release.
One last thing, the judge told the defendant, “Find out what it is that is inside of you that caused you to do this and treat it and control it.”
This is Pokin Around column No. 138.
