A former Baxter County resident, 52 year old Kirk DeMeyer, who is currently serving a sentence of forty (40) years confinement in the Arkansas Department of Corrections following his conviction in Baxter County on a Rape charge, has now been convicted in federal court on additional charges.

     This morning in the United States District Court, Western District of Arkansas- Harrison Division, Kirk DeMeyer was sentenced on (4) counts of Production of Child Pornography, federal felonies.  He had plead guilty to those charges on April 9, 2010.  He was sentenced by Presiding Judge Jim Hendren to thirty (30) years on each of the four counts, with each sentence to be served consecutively, for a cumulative sentence of 120 years in the federal prison system.  DeMeyer was also sentenced to pay a fine of $25,000.

     Kirk DeMeyer was originally arrested on May 21, 2009 in Baxter County on state charges of Rape and Endangering the Welfare of a Minor in the Second Degree.  These charges came about after a joint investigation by the Sheriff’s Office, the Immigrations and Customs Enforcement, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.  Evidence indicated that DeMeyer had been receiving and downloading digital forms of child pornography on his computer, and authorities obtained a search warrant.  During the search, authorities found evidence that DeMeyer had engaged in sexual activity with a female under 14 years of age.  On September 24, 2009, he was sentenced in Baxter County Circuit Court to forty (40) years.  He was transported to the Arkansas Department of Corrections on October 6, 2009.  He was later indicted in federal court on March 31, 2010 on eleven (11) counts of Production of Child Pornography.  Upon his guilty plea to four (4) counts, the remaining seven (7) counts were dismissed.

     DeMeyer’s pre-sentence report today in federal court indicated that he had possessed thousands of images and hundreds of videos of child pornography.  During the sentencing phase, the presiding judge strongly admonished DeMeyer for his actions.

/s/ John F. Montgomery,
Baxter County Sheriff