Saudi national given 30 months for possession of images
By Jamie Satterfield (Contact)
Tuesday, April 7, 2009


Alkhallefa

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Want to use this article? Click here for options! It doesn't take a citizenship class to know it is a crime in America to peruse child pornography, a federal judge told a Saudi national Monday.

U.S. District Judge Thomas Phillips rejected Nasir Ehmood Alkhallefa's contention that although he knew looking at any form of pornography could draw physical punishment in his homeland, he believed the United States was far more permissive.

"You cannot look at those photographs (of child pornography found on Alkhallefa's computer) without realizing the great damage it does to young children," Phillips told Alkhallefa. "It really is heartrending to see what this industry does to these children. That is not countenanced in this country. That is not countenanced in Saudi Arabia."

Alkhallefa still netted a sentencing break, however, for his confession to possessing 121 images of child pornography discovered on his laptop after he was stopped for speeding in Knoxville and became a target of interest to the FBI's Joint Terrorism Task Force.

Phillips shaved off a few months from his penalty range because of Alkhallefa's "substantial assistance" to authorities, but the nature of his cooperation was kept under wraps. That left Alkhallefa with a 30-month prison term.

Attorney Donald A. Bosch noted Alkhallefa, who was in the U.S. on a student visa to study English in Nashville when he was arrested in Knoxville in August 2007, will be deported after he's finished his sentence.

Bosch and Miami attorney Jarrett Wolf mounted a case for leniency at Monday's sentencing hearing that included testimony from Dr. Michael Rappaport, who told Phillips that Alkhallefa was not a sexual deviant.

In Saudi Arabia, there is no distinction between adult and child pornography, he said. He noted that Alkhallefa knew viewing pornography could draw harsh punishment under that country's religious law, including "stoning" for repeated violations.

But toting around pornographic images was not a violation of any Saudi criminal code, and Alkhallefa figured Americans were even more lenient, Rappaport testified.

Bosch told Phillips that Alkhallefa had already suffered as a result of his incarceration at the Blount County Jail, where he was dubbed by some guards as "al-Qaida" despite no connection to that or any other terrorist group.

"Mr. Alkhallefa has been thrust into the (general) population of the Blount County Jail," Bosch said. "While he was there, he has been attacked five times. The first time he was attacked was while he was praying."

Assistant U.S. Attorney Will Mackie urged Phillips to be mindful of the suffering children used in the pornography industry endure.

"His actions are what keeps this industry alive," Mackie said of Alkhallefa.

Jamie Satterfield may be reached at 865-342-6308.

http://www.knoxnews.com/news/2009/apr/0 ... porn-case/