Arbor Vitae man sentenced for child porn possession

Jack McBride pleaded guilty to the charge on August 7. Chief U.S. District Judge James D. Peterson handed down the sentence last week, which will be followed by 20 years of supervised release.

The Vilas County Sheriff’s Office received two CyberTips in March 2025 regarding McBride’s online conduct with minors. Law enforcement executed a search warrant at his residence on June 4, 2025.

Officers seized two cellphones and had them forensically analyzed. Agents found numerous child pornography videos and images on the phones, along with a search history for the words “incest,” “very young” and “teen.”

Peterson found that the nature of the materials McBride possessed and the fact that it was his second offense were aggravating factors warranting the 10-year sentence.

The Vilas County Sheriff’s Office and the Wisconsin Department of Justice Division of Criminal Investigation conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Elizabeth Altman prosecuted the case.

The investigation was part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat child sexual exploitation and abuse. The project marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims.