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Melbourne photographer sentenced to 30 years in child porn case

MELBOURNE, Fla. — A Melbourne photographer will spend the next 30 years in prison after he was sentenced on charges of creating and selling child porn.

David Hardman, 55, was accused of the crime more than a decade ago.

Child victim advocates said they hope David Hardman’s sentence sends a message.

They said they wish it would have taken 12 months instead of 12 years, but they believe other would-be offenders should beware of how news coverage and their dogged determination can work together to expose child sex crimes.

Hardman lashed out at Channel 9 reporters who first questioned him 12 years ago about online pictures he took of scantily clad pre-teen models on Brevard County beaches.

A change to the law of what constitutes as child pornography and an FBI investigation turned the tables on Hardman.

During a raid of his Melbourne home in August 2017, investigators said Hardman pointed a gun at federal agents and he was arrested.

Court documents show Hardman made nearly $350,000 from the sale of DVDs of minors engaged in sexually explicit activity to buyers across the country.

This past week, he was sentenced to 30 years in prison.

The sentence is welcome news to Kevin Gillick, who Channel 9 interviewed over the years about the case and whose group, Protect our Children, worked to expose Hardman.

For Gillick, it's his life's work.

“If we can make it so one of these child molesters has 30 victims in his lifetime instead of 300, we've done a lot,” he said.

No one else has been charged in connection with Hardman’s case.

The judge did order that the defendant forfeit the sale of his Melbourne home because that's where he produced the DVDs.

Those proceeds have been seized by the federal government.