Ballard County Man Sentenced to 5 Years in Federal Prison for Child Pornography Offenses

Paducah, KY - A Ballard County man was sentenced last week to 5 years in federal prison for child pornography charges.

U.S. Attorney Michael A. Bennett of the Western District of Kentucky and Special Agent in Charge Michael E. Stansbury of the Federal Bureau of Investigation Louisville Field Office made the announcement.

According to court documents, Kyle J. Ratta, 34, was sentenced to 5 years in prison, followed by 10 years of supervised release, for one count of attempted receipt of child pornography, one count of possession of child pornography, and one count of attempted transfer of obscene material to a minor. Ratta communicated online with an undercover law enforcement agent he believed to be 14 years old, and during those communications, he attempted to receive a sexually explicit image. Law enforcement subsequently recovered over 200 images of child pornography that were saved in file folders on a computer Ratta used.

There is no parole in the federal system.

This case was investigated by the FBI Hopkinsville Satellite Office.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Raymond McGee, of the U.S. Attorney's Paducah Office, prosecuted the case.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc. For more information about internet safety education, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc and click on the tab "resources."

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