[3/10/01 - Philadelphia Inquirer] - A Cape May County man pleaded guilty yesterday to using his Internet site to offer a reward to anyone who killed an abortion provider. He also pleaded guilty to owning child pornography.
Nicholas Morency, 30, of Villas, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Joseph E. Irenas to threatening abortion providers and to downloading numerous sexually explicit and sexually violent images of children. Authorities discovered the child pornography while investigating Morency for offering a $1.5 million bounty in 1999 to anyone who killed an abortion provider. Morency, a former cashier for Caesar's in Atlantic City, pleaded guilty to one count of possession of child pornography and one count of attempted interference with a health-care provider.
Morency sobbed in court yesterday as Irenas read the facts of the case aloud. At one point, Irenas ordered a two-minute break for Morency to compose himself. About January 1999, Morency posted the $1.5 million reward and suggested a target, "G.T," the initials of a Kansas physician. To attract viewers, he wrote a message on an Internet news group telling people to visit his Web site if they "respected money." He also posted messages on the Planned Parenthood electronic bulletin board and invited viewers to find his site.
In late January 1999, the National Abortion Federation, based in Washington, D.C., discovered Morency's site and reported it to the Justice Department. The site was shut down within 24 hours. FBI agents traced the Web site, obtained a search warrant, and took Morency's computer in March 2000.
After discovering child pornography on Morency's computer, they returned to Morency's residence in October 2000. Agents discovered two computer disks containing "numerous sexually explicit images of children" that "depict sexual violence against children," according to court records.
Morency admitted that he had downloaded the images from the Internet."This was good old-fashioned solid police work," U.S. Attorney Robert J. Cleary said outside the courthouse after the plea. Cleary also said prosecutors had no evidence that Morency actually had the money or intended to pay the bounty.
As part of the agreement, Morency must forfeit his computer and software to the government. He also may be subject to restrictions as a sex offender under Megan's Law. Morency was released on $50,000 unsecured bond and is scheduled to be sentenced June 22. He faces a maximum of six years in prison and a fine of $350,000.
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[posted 3/12/01]
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