Yakima man sentenced to 20 years in federal prison for soliciting nude images from teen girls

Dec. 19—A Yakima man was sentenced to 20 years in federal prison and lifetime court supervision for encouraging teen girls to send him sexually explicit images.

Craig Michael Berry, 38, pleaded guilty in July to seven counts of production and attempted production of child pornography and eight counts of online enticement and attempted online enticement of a minor. Berry was offered no plea deal in return for his guilty pleas.

At a hearing in U.S. District Court in Yakima Wednesday, U.S. Chief District Court Judge Stanley A. Bastian sentenced Berry to 20 years in prison on each count, 10 years less than prosecutors sought but five years more than Berry’s attorney asked for.

The sentences will run concurrently. In addition, Berry is also required to be on supervised release for the rest of his life after his sentence, with his online activity heavily restricted and not being allowed to possess any sexually explicit material, even if only adults are featured in it.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Murphy argued for a 30-year sentence, the maximum under federal sentencing guidelines, along with lifetime court supervision.

That lengthy sentence, Murphy said, would serve as a deterrent, protect the public and allow Berry to get any treatment needed to reform his behavior.

In his sentencing memorandum, defense attorney Paul Shelton took issue with Murphy’s suggestion that sex offenders have a high likelihood of committing new offenses, citing studies that show actual recidivism rates for sex offenders at between 5 and 10%. And with the supervision Berry will be under, Shelton wrote, it is highly unlikely that he would reoffend.

Keeping Berry in prison for 30 years, Shelton said, would strain Berry’s family ties, eroding his support network and making it more difficult for him to reintegrate into society when he is released.

“Will any sentence this court imposes do anything meaningful in helping the victims in their healing process?” Shelton wrote.

Berry has no prior felony convictions, and Shelton noted that Berry never hid his identity, nor did he threaten or blackmail his victims.

Shelton also provided letters from Berry’s family and friends stating that Berry’s actions were completely out of character and attributing them the fact that Berry went through two divorces, with the last one having “destroyed him.”

“Craig does not need prison. He needs a therapist,” Sue Berry, his mother, wrote.

The federal charges stem from a 2022 investigation by Yakima police into allegations that Berry was paying teenage girls for nude images.

The investigation led to the identification of several girls who said that Berry met them either at a haunted house he was running or through social media, according to court documents.

Berry, the girls told investigators, would buy them various things, ranging from food to cellphones, alcohol and marijuana. He then demanded the girls send him nude photos and videos, also giving them lingerie and sex toys to use in videos, the court documents said.

In one case, Berry threatened to cut off a girl’s cell service if she didn’t comply with his demands, and another girl was told that he would turn her in for sending child pornography if she didn’t do what he said, the documents said.

He was originally charged in Yakima County Superior Court with multiple counts of sexually exploiting minors, commercial sex abuse of minors, communicating with minors for immoral purposes and giving minors alcohol and marijuana. He also faced a single count of sexually molesting a minor after one of the girls said he groped her breasts under her clothing, according to court documents.

Yakima County prosecutors dropped those charges without prejudice Oct. 12, 2023, a day after the federal indictment was handed down, giving prosecutors the option to refile them if necessary.

Berry was initially released on $50,000 bail, but the court’s Pretrial Services said he violated the terms of his release by conversing online with a minor while playing a video game. His bail was increased to $70,000 and he was ordered to only use a tablet that had filters in place to restrict his internet use.

But in February 2023, Berry was again found in violation of the terms of his release, using an unauthorized computer to play World of Warcraft with a group that included a minor, prosecutors said.

He was ordered held in lieu of $85,000 bail. Berry has been held in the Yakima County jail on a federal hold since his indictment, according to jail records.

Bastian recommended Berry be sent to the Federal Correctional Institution Englewood, a low-security federal prison in Colorado that housed former Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich and former Subway pitchman Jared Fogle.

Reach Donald W. Meyers at dmeyers@yakimaherald.com.