Justin Eichorn

REGIONAL- Federal prosecutors are seeking a five-year prison sentence for former Minnesota Sen. Justin Eichorn following his guilty plea to attempted possession of child pornography. The request is nearly three times the top of the federal sentencing guideline range.
That range calls for 15 to 21 months in prison. Prosecutors argue that a longer sentence is warranted by the seriousness of Eichorn’s conduct, the danger they say he poses to children, and the need to deter similar offenses. They also are seeking lifetime supervised release.
Eichorn admitted in his May plea agreement that he repeatedly contacted someone he believed was a 17-year-old girl after responding to an advertisement for sexual services on the Mega Personals website. The person was actually an undercover police officer.
According to the plea agreement, Eichorn called or texted the number nine times before receiving a response. He continued communicating after being told the purported girl was 17, repeatedly requested increasingly revealing photographs, discussed rates for sexual services, and drove to a Bloomington address provided by the officer, where he was arrested.
Eichorn pleaded guilty May 14 to attempted possession of child pornography. He originally was also indicted for attempted enticement of a minor, a charge prosecutors have agreed to move to dismiss when he is sentenced.
After applying the agreed-upon adjustments to Eichorn’s offense level, the plea agreement calculated an advisory prison range of 15 to 21 months. The statutory maximum is 10 years.
The plea agreement does not restrict either side to recommending a sentence within the guideline range. It states that prosecutors and Eichorn are “free to recommend whatever sentence they deem appropriate” and may seek or oppose variances. The agreement also notes that the guidelines are advisory and do not bind the court.
In their sentencing memorandum, prosecutors argued that the guideline range does not adequately account for Eichorn’s persistence after being repeatedly told that the person he was contacting was 17.
“The defendant’s course of criminal conduct in this case did not cause a lifetime of pain and suffering only because he was actually communicating with police rather than with a 17-year-old girl,” Assistant U.S. Attorney David Classen wrote.
While acknowledging that Eichorn accepted responsibility, prosecutors contend his actions demonstrate that he remains a danger to children, both through direct contact and electronic communications. They argue that a five-year sentence is necessary to punish Eichorn and deter others who might use smartphones and internet-connected devices to target minors.
In addition to the prison term, prosecutors are asking the court to place Eichorn on supervised release for life. The applicable guideline range for supervised release is five years to life.
Prosecutors are requesting conditions that would restrict Eichorn’s access to the internet and electronic devices, allow monitoring and searches by probation officials, require sex-offender treatment, and limit unsupervised contact with minors.
No defense sentencing memorandum had been filed as of Tuesday. Eichorn is scheduled to be sentenced Wednesday, Sept. 23, before U.S. District Judge Eric C. Tostrud in St. Paul.