MAYS LANDING – An Atlantic City man was indicted last week for causing a child to engage in pornography, and for engaging in sexual conduct with 7 additional children, Acting Atlantic County Prosecutor Diane Ruberton announced.
A year-long investigation of the Atlantic County Prosecutor’s Office Computer Crimes Unit resulted last week in a 12-count indictment of Sherman W. Miller, 49-years-old, of Oceanic Terrace, Atlantic City.
- Endangering the Welfare of a Child by Causing the Child to Engage in Pornography—a crime of the 1st degree,
- The Possession or Viewing of a Pornographic Image Depicting the Sexual Exploitation or Abuse of a Child—a 3rd degree crime,
- (7) counts of Endangering the Welfare of a Child by Engaging in Sexual Conduct with children—3rd degree crimes,
- Obscenity for Persons Under the Age of 18, for knowingly showing obscene material to various persons juveniles—3rd degree,
- Failing to Register as a Sex Offender, 3rd degree, and
- Failing, as a Registered Sex Offender, to Register a Change of Address with 10 days of that change—a crime of the 3rd degree.
In January 2016, a joint investigation by law enforcement in Texas and the Atlantic County Prosecutor’s Office Computer Crimes Unit led to the arrest of Miller by detectives of the Prosecutor’s Office on February 4, 2016 at his Atlantic City home. Miller was charged with: Endangering the Welfare of a Child under the age of 14, Obscenity, Failing to Register as a Sex Offender, and Failure to Notify as a Sex Offender a Change of Address. The State alleges that Miller sent the images from New Jersey electronically to the juvenile victim in Texas.
The arrest was made without incident. Detectives processed Miller for the arrest and lodged him in the Atlantic County Justice Facility on $50,000 cash / no 10% bail set by Atlantic County Superior Court Judge Patricia M. Wild. Miller has remained in custody since the arrest.
Continued investigation by Prosecutor’s Office detectives resulted in the identification of the additional crimes and additional child victims in 7 more States—Michigan, Georgia, Massachusetts, California, Missouri, South Carolina, and Mississippi—that led to last week’s indictment.
The State alleges that Miller transmitted still photographs of his penis to the victims, then sent the victims video of him masturbating. The State further alleges that Miller induced one victim to send images back; that action resulted in the 1st degree indictment for causing the child to engage in pornography. The age-range of the 8 victims was 9 to 14 years.
Miller is a Tier 2 registered sex offender.
A conviction for a 1st degree crime carries a potential penalty of 10-20 years of incarceration in New Jersey State Prison. The potential penalty for a 3rd degree conviction is 3-5 years in prison.
Anyone with information regarding child abuse or the exploitation of children in Atlantic County is asked to contact the Atlantic County Prosecutor’s Office Special Victims Unit at: (609) 909-7800.
These charges are merely an accusation and not proof of guilt. In all criminal cases, a charged defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
Anyone with information involving serious crimes is asked to call the Atlantic County Prosecutor’s Office at 609-909-7800 or go to the Prosecutor’s Office Web site at http://www.acpo.org/tips.html and provide information by filling out the form anonymously on the Submit a Tip page. People can also call Crime Stoppers at 609-652-1234 or 1-800-658-8477 (TIPS) or visit the Crime Stoppers Website at http://www.crimestoppersatlantic.com/. Crime Stoppers offers cash rewards for information leading to the arrest and indictment of those who commit crimes in Atlantic County.
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