Coos Bay Child Pornography Fugitive Sentenced to Prison

John Calvin Hudson III is sentenced to three years in prison.

John Calvin Hudson III was sentenced for 10 counts of Encouraging Child Sexual Abuse in the first-degree

(COOS BAY) - Attorney General John Kroger today announced that a former fugitive was sentenced to three years in prison after pleading guilty to child pornography charges.

“Child pornography victimizes children and the people who engage in it need to be punished,” said Attorney General Kroger.

John Calvin Hudson III was indicted in Coos County in August, but fled the area. The U.S. Marshals Fugitive Task Force arrested him in September in a Bend motel.

Hudson pleaded guilty Nov. 17 to 10 counts of encouraging child sexual abuse in the first degree and was sentenced to 3 years in prison and 3 years of post-prison supervision. He was taken into custody after the hearing.

Senior Assistant Attorney General Michael Slauson prosecuted the case.

Hudson’s arrest followed an investigation by the Oregon Department of Justice's Internet Crimes against Children (ICAC) unit, which investigates and prosecutes predators who use the internet to target and sexually exploit children. The unit works with 160 district attorneys, law enforcement agencies and regional task forces that investigate online predators. ICAC is the only program in Oregon that is equipped with the necessary resources to catch sex predators throughout the state.

Recent budget cuts threatened to end the program in Oregon, but Attorney General Kroger made restoring the funds a top public safety priority. This spring, Kroger announced that the Oregon Department of Justice had received a $665,000 federal stimulus grant to keep the program operating.

Since 2005, more than 100 internet predators who targeted Oregon children or operated in Oregon have been convicted as a result of ICAC investigations.

Attorney General John Kroger leads the Oregon Department of Justice. The Department's mission is to fight crime and fraud, protect the environment, improve child welfare, and defend the rights of all Oregonians.