A former Democrat councilman from Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, was sentenced on Monday to 14 to 30 months in state prison on child pornography charges.
Brad Koplinski, 53, recently pled guilty to all 15 felony counts of possessing child pornography in June, WHTM reported.
In addition to his sentence, he will also serve five years of probation and must register as a sex offender for 15 years, according to the Dauphin County District Attorney’s Office via FOX 43.
In September 2020, detectives discovered that Koplopski had uploaded child pornography 36 times to the internet using a laptop and a thumb drive and later determined that it was at least 44 times he did so, according to PennLive.
He also admitted to introducing pornography to other men and that he would watch pornographic content involving children with groups of men.
The 53-year-old and his defense team were hoping he would receive a lesser sentence, including serving time in county jail. However, the prosecution team argued that he should serve time in state prison, which the judge ultimately agreed with.
Koplisnksi had entered counseling since his arrest and expressed remorse for his actions at the hearing.
“Humiliation is not a negative term. It is a return to humility,” the judge told Koplisnki prior to his sentencing. “You have taken humiliation and formed the foundation of recovery.”
Along with being a Harrisburg councilman for eight years before losing reelection in 2015, Koplinski ran to be the Democrat nominee for the 2014 Lieutenant Governors race in Pennsylvania but did not win the primary.
He also ran an unsuccessful campaign for the Dauphin County Clerk of Courts in 2019 as the Democrat nominee.
Koplinski had previously been arrested for stealing a press pass and trespassing into the 2016 Democrat Party National Convention in Philadelphia. He was also arrested that year for driving without a license.
You can follow Ethan Letkeman on Twitter at @EthanLetkeman.
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