Prisoner faces child porn charges

A 61-year-old Kalispell man was charged with felony production of child pornography Wednesday during a federal court session in Missoula.

David Dwain Sledge pleaded innocent.

He already is being held in Montana State Prison in Deer Lodge for 2010 convictions for sexual assault and indecent exposure in Flathead District Court.

Judge Katherine Curtis sentenced Sledge to 40 years in prison with 32 years suspended in December 2010 for exposing himself and having sexual contact with a girl for seven years beginning when she was 10 years old.

Three other girls also accused Sledge of exposing himself or having inappropriate contact with them, according to court documents.

Among the allegations included in charging documents filed by the Flathead County Attorney’s Office in 2010 is that Sledge photographed two nude underage girls in a hot tub during a stay at a cabin in Glacier National Park.

It’s not clear if that incident led to the federal charge. The U.S. Attorney’s Office does not release details of charges until trial or a change of plea by a defendant.

The new federal charge is punishable by up to 30 years in prison, a fine of $250,000 and lifetime supervision.

Assistant I.S. Attorney Cyndee Peterson is the prosecutor for the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

The investigation was a cooperative effort between the Montana Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force, the Flathead County Sheriff’s Office and the Montana Division of Criminal Investigation.