Date: 07-22-2024

Case Style:

United States of America v. Olejuwan Lamar Steele

Case Number:

Judge: Steven D. Merryday

Court: The United States District Court for the Middle District of Florida

Plaintiff's Attorney: The United States Attorney’s Office for Tampa

Defendant's Attorney:

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Description:

Tampa, Florida criminal defense lawyer represented the Defendant charged with Producing Child Sexual Abuse Material
Dade City Babysitter Gets Maximum Sentence For Producing Child Sexual Abuse Material

U.S. District Judge Steven D. Merryday today sentenced Olejuwan Lamar Steele (30, Zephyrhills) to 30 years in federal prison, followed by a lifetime of supervised release, for production of child sex abuse material. The court also ordered Steele to pay $3,000 in restitution to the victim and register as a sex offender. Steele entered a guilty plea on April 17, 2024.

According to court documents, Steele was a babysitter in the Dade City community in Pasco County. On one occasion in 2022, while babysitting a two-year-old child, Steele created videos of child sexual abuse material of the victim and shared them on the internet via live-video.

“This babysitter exploited the innocence of a child in his care, betrayed the trust placed in him, and violated the sanctity of childhood itself,” said Homeland Security Investigations Tampa Assistant Special Agent in Charge Micah McCombs. “Through HSI’s law enforcement partnership with the Pasco Sheriff’s Office, this predator will now be held accountable for his vile actions against a child.”

This case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations—Tampa with substantial assistance from the Pasco Sheriff’s Office. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Erin Claire Favorit.

This is another case brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.

Outcome:

Defendant was found guilty and sentenced to 30 years in federal prison, followed by a lifetime of supervised release

Plaintiff's Experts:

Defendant's Experts:

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