Man Avoids Jail Time in Child Porn Case

A Sheffield, Massachusetts, man has avoided jail time after pleading guilty to possessing child pornography.

Michael Agar was sentenced Thursday in Berkshire Superior Court to three years of probation and ordered to register as a sex offender after entering his plea.

The Berkshire Eagle reports that the 62-year-old Agar attracted the attention of Homeland Security in 2012 after Australian police reported he had been posting "child erotica" on a website there and discussing his interest in child pornography. Around the same time, federal investigators discovered that a Georgia man had emailed Agar child pornography.

Police raided Agar's home in May 2013 and discovered hundreds of child pornography images and videos on his computer and storage devices.

Agar's lawyer said her client's behavior stemmed from a stressful divorce and he accepts responsibility.