A Washington County man has pleaded guilty to a federal child sexual abuse material charge stemming from an investigation that began after authorities found him with two boys at Elephant Rocks State Park in 2023.
Michael E. Barton, 46, admitted Aug. 20 in U.S. District Court in St. Louis to one count of possession of child pornography and one count of failure to update his sex offender registry, according to a news release from the office of U.S. Attorney Thomas.
Barton is scheduled to be sentenced Nov. 18. The possession charge carries a potential sentence of 10 to 20 years in prison, while the failure-to-register charge carries a maximum sentence of 10 years.
The case dates to Nov. 12, 2023, when a Missouri State Park ranger encountered Barton at Elephant Rocks State Park and ran the license plate of his vehicle, according to the federal plea agreement.
The ranger learned Barton was a registered sex offender and was prohibited by law from being within 500 feet of a park with a playground, according to the plea agreement.
During a traffic stop, the ranger found two boys, ages 8 and 12, in Barton's vehicle. The ranger obtained the passcode to one of Barton's cellphones and discovered a YouTube account that Barton had not registered, as well as photographs of the older boy shirtless.
A second phone contained Snapchat conversations between Barton and the older boy that included adult pornography, according to the plea agreement.
When confronted with the findings, Barton ran toward his vehicle and grabbed the older boy's arm, according to the agreement. The ranger used a Taser on Barton before handcuffing him.
Barton consented to a search of the second phone, which investigators said contained photographs and videos of the older boy. Investigators also found videos recorded by a camera Barton had hidden in his home.
The Missouri State Highway Patrol's Division of Drug and Crime Control and Missouri State Park Rangers investigated the case.
The investigation initially resulted in state charges. In November 2023, the Missouri State Highway Patrol said Barton, then 43, had been charged with child molestation, statutory sodomy and two counts of sexual exploitation of a child.
Investigators said they were contacted on Nov. 12 to assist with the investigation after Barton was arrested by rangers at Elephant Rocks State Park. Authorities said information discovered during a consensual search of his cellphones led investigators to believe the two children could be victims of sexual abuse.
A subsequent search warrant for Barton's phones uncovered evidence investigators said showed sexual abuse had been committed against the children.
Barton was previously convicted in 2009 of possessing child sexual abuse material, according to the Missouri State Highway Patrol.
The federal prosecution was brought under Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide Department of Justice initiative launched in 2006 to combat child sexual exploitation and abuse. The program coordinates federal, state, and local resources to investigate and prosecute offenses involving the exploitation of children.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Hayes is prosecuting the federal case.