Hardin County sex offender sentenced to 35 Years in prison for child enticement, exploitation offenses
PRESS RELEASE FROM THE UNITED STATES ATTORNEY'S OFFICE (WDTN):
JACKSON, Tenn. (WBBJ) – James Daniel McGee, 36, of Savannah, Tennessee, has been sentenced to 35 years in federal prison for using the internet to entice a minor to engage in criminal sexual acts from July to November 2024, and for committing that offense while being required to register as a sex offender under Tennessee law. D. Michael Dunavant, United States Attorney for the Western District of Tennessee, announced the sentence today.
In May 2013, McGee was convicted of solicitation of a minor and exploitation of a minor by electronic means in Hardin County, Tennessee. As a result of those convictions, he was required to register as a sex offender pursuant to Tennessee law for at least 10 years. In September 2024, McGee was removed from the Tennessee sex offender registry following his petition for removal after he completed the requisite 10-year registry period. However, it was later learned that in July 2024, McGee began communicating via social media applications and text messages with a 15-year-old minor female who resided in Campbell, Missouri.
The investigation revealed that in August 2024, McGee traveled from his residence in Savannah to the minor female’s residence in Missouri and engaged in sexual acts with her. Later, in November 2024, McGee traveled to Missouri again, picked up the minor female near her home, and then traveled back to Savannah where the two again engaged in sexual activity at McGee’s home.
Officers with the Savannah Police Department ultimately found the minor female in McGee’s home. She was interviewed and told the police that she met McGee on Facebook earlier that year, that McGee asked her to send him nude photos and videos of herself, and that she complied because he told her that he would get her into “deep trouble” if she did not. She also confirmed the McGee videotaped them having sexual intercourse at his home in Savannah.
Following his guilty plea to the above charges, United States District Judge J. Daniel Breen sentenced McGee to 35 years in prison and 10 years of supervised release. There is no parole in the federal system. McGee is also facing several state charges in Hardin County and in Dunklin County, Missouri for his conduct in this case.
U.S. Attorney D. Michael Dunavant said, “With the proliferation of cell phones and social media, vulnerable children are at a high risk of solicitation and enticement for sex. This office will always aggressively prosecute and seek significant and mandatory sentences for such recidivist and predatory behavior in order to protect children and hold offenders accountable.”
This case was investigated by members of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Savannah Police Department, the Campbell, Missouri Police Department, and the Dunklin County, Missouri Sheriff’s Office.
Assistant United States Attorney Josh Morrow prosecuted this case on behalf of the government.
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