A Tioga County man admits to producing and distributing child pornography. 47-year-old Richard Pierce of Apalachin pled guilty in Binghamton Federal Court. A trial was set to begin in May. In March 2009, Pierce admitted he videotaped and photographed 2 boys under the age of 12 at his home. Pierce also says he’s guilty of downloading thousands of child porn photos to his personal computer. An undercover cop in Florida had been communicating with Pierce online and found the pictures using file sharing software. Pierce will be sentenced on August 17, 2011 to serve 15 years to 30 years in prison. He is a father of 5 children – his youngest is 9 years old. He was also a coach for the Southern Tier Hockey Association.
