KC Reporter

A Missouri man, who was an inmate at the Vernon County jail at the time of his offense, was sentenced in federal court today for the sexual exploitation of a child.

Houston Wade Young, 37, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Stephen R. Bough to life in federal prison without parole.

On Jan. 30, 2024, Houston Young pleaded guilty to one count of the sexual exploitation of a minor. His wife, co-defendant Jessica Ann Young, 33, of Kansas City, Mo., pleaded guilty on March 11, 2024, to two counts of the sexual exploitation of a minor and awaits sentencing.

On March 5, 2020, Houston Young, while an inmate at the Vernon County jail, was found to be in possession of a cell phone that contained images of child pornography. Young was being detained pending a civil proceeding to determine whether he should be civilly committed as a sexually violent predator for his prior sex offense convictions.

On March 7, 2020, law enforcement officers received information that Jessica Young had sent pornographic images of a seven-year-old child (identified in court documents as “John Doe 1”) to Houston Young’s cell phone. Investigators found text messages on the cell phone between Jessica and Houston Young that discussed sexually abusing John Doe 1. During the text messages, Jessica Young sent Houston Young two pornographic images of John Doe 1. Multiple other images of child pornography sent by Jessica Young also were found on Houston Young’s cell phone.

Jessica Young admitted she had sexually abused two child victims—John Doe 1 and thirteen-year-old John Doe 2—on multiple occasions. She also admitted that she had recorded video of herself sexually abusing John Doe 2.

A forensic analysis of Houston Young’s cell phone also determined that he sent images of child pornography to Jessica Young and a sixteen-year-old child victim (identified in court documents as “Jane Doe”). He sent pornographic images of himself to Jane Doe and solicited child pornographic images from her that she then sent him; they engaged in sexual conversations via text messages and various applications including Kik and WhatsApp after initially meeting through League of Legends game room chat.

Houston Young was involuntarily committed to the Missouri Department of Mental Health’s Sex Offender Rehabilitation and Treatment Services program in February 2021. He has two prior felony convictions related to the sexual exploitation of children: one for child molestation in Wright County in 2005 and another for possessing child pornography in Jackson County in 2016.

This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Ami Harshad Miller. It was investigated by the FBI along with local law enforcement agencies including the Vernon County Sheriff’s Department and Kentucky Department of Criminal Investigations.

Project Safe Childhood

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood—a nationwide initiative launched by the Department of Justice in May 2006 aimed at combating child sexual exploitation and abuse through coordinated efforts among federal, state, and local resources—to locate offenders and rescue victims. More information about Project Safe Childhood can be found at www.usdoj.gov/psc along with resources on Internet safety education.