This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2013, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
A Stansbury Park man has pleaded guilty to producing child pornography, admitting that he photographed children engaged in sexually explicit conduct.
In February, a federal grand jury indicted John Reid Clayton, 29, on pornography charges for allegedly enticing four children to engage in sexually explicit conduct that he then photographed.
He was facing four counts of production of child pornography and one count of possession of child pornography. On Wednesday, he pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court to one count of production of child pornography.
In court documents, Clayton admits that he coerced a minor into engaging in sexually explicit conduct for the purpose of producing a "visual depiction" of the conduct.
Clayton faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 15 years and up to 30 years in federal prison when he is sentenced on July 16.
The victims were ages 5 and younger, according to a statement from the U.S. Attorney's Office.
The date Clayton began filming the children is unknown, according to a court document, but the activity ended around Sept. 29, 2012.
The Tooele County Sheriff's Office, Tooele City Police Department and the Utah Internet Crimes Against Children task force participated in the investigation. Federal charges were filed as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat "epidemic" child sexual exploitation.
Twitter: @jm_miller