Since alleged child pornographer Jackson Whitt, 27, of Russellville, Ark., was arrested on Jan. 24, he has been doing a lot of traveling.
First stop was the McIntosh County jail, where he was arrested on charges of procuring obscene material; soliciting a minor for indecent exposure/obscene material; lewd or indecent proposals or acts to a child under 16 and showing obscene material to a minor.
After spending several months in the local jail awaiting prosecution, those charges were dropped on May 10 and he was arrested by federal authorities and taken to the federal jail in Muskogee. The U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Oklahoma charged Whitt with more than 20 allegations of Production of Child Pornography; Possession of Child Pornography and Receipt of Child Pornography.
On May 15, those charges were terminated and Whitt was transferred to the United States District Court of Eastern Arkansas in Little Rock, where the charges were refiled on July 15.
He is awaiting trial, which will take place next year. Attorneys for the defense and the prosecution must file any pre-trial motions on or before Feb. 3, 2025.
Whitt’s downfall began when the Eufaula Police Department began investigating a possible pornography ring with connections to a student at Eufaula High School.
The investigation, which began Jan. 18 as a result of information uncovered by School Resource Officer Mike Harris at the high school, led to the arrest of three people, including Whitt, Kaylee Renee Hartline, 25, of Tulsa, and Ryan Michael Catron, 21, of Camdenton, Mo.
Catron was arrested in May and a $250,000 bond imposed. He awaits a pre-preliminary hearing conference, which is set for 9 a.m., July 31.
Hartline, who lived with caregivers in Tulsa according to a probable cause affidavit, has been charged with procuring/ producing/distributing/ possession of juvenile pornography; soliciting sexual conduct or communication with a minor by use of technology; lewd molestation or indecent acts to a minor; showing obscene material to a minor.
However, she has been declared incompetent to stand trial at this time and is being held at a medical facility. She is to be re-evaluated at a hearing scheduled for 9 a.m., Jan. 8, 2025.
