Harrison James Miller, of Hagerstown will spend 37 years in federal prison.
Baltimore, Maryland – U.S. District Court Judge Brendan A. Hurson sentenced Harrison James Miller, 32, of Hagerstown, Maryland, to 37 years in federal prison, followed by lifetime supervised release. Miller previously pled guilty to two counts of sexual exploitation of a child as well as commission of a felony crime involving a minor by a registered sex offender.
Kelly O. Hayes, U.S. Attorney for the District of Maryland, announced the guilty plea with Special Agent in Charge William J. DelBagno, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) – Baltimore Field Office; Gina M. Cirincion, State’s Attorney for Washington County; and Chief Paul Kifer, Hagerstown Police Department (HPD).
According to the guilty plea, Miller was ordered to register as a sex offender after a conviction in Pennsylvania involving an 8-year-old child. In August 2022, upon release from prison, Miller moved to Hagerstown, Maryland, but did not register as a sex offender as required by law.
Miller then gained access to two children, ages 4 and 5, and sexually abused them over a period of several months. Additionally, Miller took images of the minors which he stored in a password protected folder on his cell phone. Authorities arrested and charged Miller after one of the minors disclosed the abuse to his mother. Through a search of Miller’s phone, law enforcement uncovered the hidden images and other evidence.
This case was 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 Attorney’s 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 justice.gov/psc. For more information about Internet safety education, please visit www.justice.gov/psc and click on the “Resources” tab on the left of the page.
U.S. Attorney Hayes commended the FBI, Washington County State’s Attorney’s Office, and HPD for their work in the investigation. Ms. Hayes also thanked Assistant U.S. Attorney Colleen Elizabeth McGuinn who is prosecuting the federal case.
For more information about the Maryland U.S. Attorney’s Office, its priorities, and resources available to help the community, visit justice.gov/usao-md and justice.gov/usao-md/community-outreach.