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	5 Years Imprisonment for US Vicar Caught with Child Pornography: the Church of England Newspaper, Aug 12, 2011 P 7.p The Conger August 12, 2011 http://geoconger.wordpress.com/2011/08/11/5-years-imprisonment-for-us-vicar-caught-with-child-pornography-the-church-of-england-newspaper-aug-12-2011-p-7-p/ First published in the Church of England Newspaper. A former clergyman of the Episcopal Diocese of Northern Michigan has been sentenced to a term of five years imprisonment for possessing child pornography. On Aug 3, the US Attorney for the Western District of Michigan, Donald A Davis, announced that Mathew Elliot Metor, 37, of Escanaba, Michigan, would serve 60 months in federal prison. District Judge R. Allan Edgar further ordered Metor to serve ten years of supervised release following his release from prison, and to pay a $100 special assessment. Mr. Metor was deposed from the ministry of the Episcopal Church on Dec 22, 2010 after he renounced his orders. He had served as vicar of St Stephen’s Episcopal Church in Escanaba and until 2005 was director of the diocesan youth camp. On July 31, the former Bishop of Northern Michigan, the Rt. Rev. Tom Ray posted a message to the diocesan internet chat board asking for prayers for the former minister. The bishop noted the sentence of five years was “well below the governmental guidelines” and was likely due to the “letters written on his behalf and because of his remarkably clean and faithful history.” “Mat was convicted of downloading child pornography without ever paying for it or ever distributing it. He was a voyeur,” the bishop said. “Mat has grown up among us in this diocese and is so respected in his home community of St. Steven’s, Escanaba that he was called to prepare for ordination to the priesthood. Mat has accepted his sentence graciously and sadly. His attorney and the Federal Judge (an Episcopalian) both argued for and agreed to a considerably reduced sentence. Please remember our brother, Mat, in your continuing prayers,” Bishop Ray wrote. On March 30, 2011, Metor pled guilty to one count of possessing child pornography. Assistant US Attorney Paul D. Lochner said Metor admitted that he had obtained child pornography by using Frostwire, a peer-to-peer file sharing program, to download images and videos to his computer. Metor had downloaded over 800 images and over 100 videos of child pornography, the US Attorney’s office said. The arrest and conviction were part of the Justice Department’s Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative designed to protect children from online exploitation and abuse. The US Attorney thanked local police officials and members of the United States Secret Service for their work in bringing Metor to justice.
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