Defendant in child porn case asks for bond reduction
By Debbie Lowe

Leon C. Sprinkle, 48, appeared in Carroll Circuit Court Jan. 29 to request his $10,000 bond be reduced. However, a continuance filed by Carroll County Prosecutor Trish Thompson was granted and the hearing was rescheduled for Feb. 3 at 3 p.m.

Sprinkle was charged last June with five counts of possession of child pornography, Class D felonies, and one count of attempted child exploitation, a Class C felony.

Court records show this was the second time Sprinkle asked for a reduction in his bond. Sprinkle's initial bond was set at $45,000. That amount was reduced to $10,000 on Sept. 11.

During the Monday afternoon hearing, Thompson told Circuit Court Judge Donald Currie she was not able to successfully notify the victim and witnesses of the hearing date.

In addition, Thompson's motion indicated the United States Secret Service contacted her office about the possibility of assuming jurisdiction of all or part of the case in order to prosecute it in the federal system.

Special Agent Roger Goodes, who is in charge of the United States Secret Service in Indiana, and works in the field office in Indianapolis, said Tuesday, his agency is "peripherally involved with the case."

"We don't have a case opened right now," he said. "We are reviewing the facts to see if it fits the criteria to be prosecuted federally."

"We participated in a child pornography operation at the end of summer in the northern judicial district in Indiana," Goodes said.

He said Indiana law enforcement authorities on the local level experienced a heightened awareness of the Secret Service's capabilities during that operation. Goodes said it could be logical for the Secret Service to become involved in the Sprinkle case.

"A lot of computer-related crime crosses state lines, and that makes it a federal offense," Goodes said.

Sprinkle will appear Feb. 3 in Carroll Circuit Court at 3 p.m. for bond reduction.