EDWARDS CO., Ill. - There seems to have been a lot of guys busted for child porn out of Lawrence County in places other than Lawrence lately, and a rotund individual is the latest.
Edwards County State's Attorney Eric St. Ledger said that Dennis R. Poland of Lawrence County, Illinois, was sentenced on March 1, 2019 to a total of 30 years in the Illinois Department of Corrections, to be followed by a term of 3 years to natural life of Mandatory Supervised Release (formerly known as “parole”).
Poland was found guilty at the conclusion of a stipulated bench trial held on yesterday in Edwards County Circuit Court of two counts of Child Pornography (one Class X Felony and one Class 1 Felony). Poland was sentenced to 20 years in the Illinois Department of Corrections to be followed by Mandatory Supervised Release of 3 years to natural life on the Class X Felony, and sentenced to 10 years in the Illinois Department of Corrections to be followed by 2 years of Mandatory Supervised Release on the Class 1 Felony. The sentences on the two felonies were ordered to run consecutively (first one, then the other; they will not be counted at the same time, which is known as 'concurrent' and is more common than 'consecutive.').
Judge Michael Valentine was the sentencing judge and also the judge who presided over the stipulated bench trial. Edwards County State’s Attorney Eric A. St Ledger prosecuted the case on behalf of the People of the State of Illinois and public defender Brian Shinkle represented the defendant, Dennis Poland. This case was investigated by the Illinois State Police.