RAPID CITY, S.D. – A South Dakota man has been sentenced to five years in federal prison for using artificial intelligence to create sexually explicit images of minors he personally knew.
Kevin Davison was sentenced Monday in U.S. District Court after pleading guilty in March to one count of possessing child sexual abuse material. The court dismissed the other charges as part of a plea agreement.
According to court documents, between May 2022 and September 2023, Davison used an AI application on a laptop and two phones to generate explicit images involving four minors he knew personally.
At sentencing, one victim, now an adult, asked the judge to consider a lower sentence. Davison’s attorney cited his lack of a prior criminal record, employment, family responsibilities, and participation in sex-offender treatment.
But Judge Camela Theeler said other victims described lasting impacts from the offense and requested a sentence at the high end of the agreed range.
The judge ultimately sentenced Davison to five years in federal prison.
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