Bucksport Man Going to Prison for 11+ Years on Child Porn Charges

A Bucksport man will spend more than 11 years in prison for charges of possession of child pornography.

William Meier, 57, was sentenced Thursday in federal court to 11 years and 3 months in prison, to be followed by 10 years of supervised release. He's also ordered to pay $86,000 in restitution. Meier pleaded guilty to the charges against him on March 1st, 2021.

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According to a post on the Bucksport Police Department's Facebook page, Meier was found in possession of electronic devices that contained child exploitation material. The electronics, including a cell phone and a computer with associated drives, were seized from his home on June 13th, 2020. Some of the seized materials contained images of children under the age of 12.

This case was prosecuted as part of a nationwide program called Project Safe Childhood, which works to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. The program was launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by U.S. Attorney's offices and the department's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to better locate, apprehend, and prosecute people who exploit children via the internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims.

Anyone who believes they know of someone who is involved in the possession, distribution, receipt, or production of child pornography can file a report with the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children online or by calling 1-800-843-5678. If it's an emergency situation, officials urge calling 911 for an immediate response from law enforcement.