Vancouver man gets 5 years for possessing child porn

A man who possessed hundreds of images of child pornography was sentenced Wednesday to more than five years in prison.

Patrick Wayne Martin, 38, of Vancouver pleaded guilty May 29 in Clark County Superior Court to three counts of first-degree possession of depictions of a minor engaged in sexually explicit conduct. He faced three additional counts before reaching a plea deal with the Clark County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office.

In July 2018, the Vancouver Police Department Digital Evidence Cybercrime Unit began investigating Martin, a registered sex offender who was previously convicted for similar crimes, according to an affidavit of probable cause. Martin had failed a scheduled polygraph test and admitted to unauthorized internet use, the affidavit said.

A state Department of Corrections case officer located a flash drive and memory card on Martin as he was being arrested on suspicion of conditional release violations, according to the affidavit. Later, a Vancouver police detective also accessed a computer and cellphone through a search warrant, the affidavit said.

Investigators found 359 images and video of child pornography. The images, which appeared to be still shots from a video, featured a girl as young as 6 years old being sexually abused, the affidavit said.

Martin originally faced up to 8 ½ years in prison if convicted on all six counts, said Louis Byrd Jr., Martin’s court-appointed defense attorney.

A pre-sentence investigation report recommended Martin serve slightly more than six years on the three counts he pleaded to, according to court records, and the negotiating parties agreed to the lower end of the sentencing range.

Martin told Judge Jennifer Snider on Wednesday that he plans to seek treatment and is confident it will help.

“I don’t really have too much to say,” Martin said. “I definitely want to get through with this and do the treatment.”