A 49-year-old Claremore man with a long record of child pornography offenses has been sentenced in federal court to a decade behind bars and a lifetime of supervision.
On Friday, April 10, 2026, William Don Woods received a 10-year federal prison sentence, to be followed by lifetime supervised release, after admitting he searched for and accessed child pornography. Prosecutors say the new punishment caps years of repeat violations and court orders that were supposed to keep him away from illegal material.
Federal court records and local reporting show Woods’ history in these cases stretches back almost two decades. As reported by KOKH, he was first convicted in 2008 of possessing child pornography, drawing an 87-month prison term and an order barring him from viewing, purchasing or possessing pornography of any kind.
Officials allege Woods violated that order repeatedly by viewing images in 2014, 2015 and 2016. He was indicted again in 2017, a case that led to another 10-year prison sentence followed by five years of supervised release. According to KOKH, prosecutors say that just five weeks after his most recent release from custody, Woods was caught searching for child pornography again. He pleaded guilty to the latest charge and will remain in custody until he is transferred to the U.S. Bureau of Prisons.
Federal initiative and typical penalties
Federal prosecutors often pursue repeat child-exploitation offenders under the Department of Justice’s Project Safe Childhood initiative, which brings together U.S. attorneys’ offices, the FBI and local partners to target online child exploitation. USAO press releases in similar cases show prosecutors routinely seek multi-year prison terms and, especially for repeat offenders, lifetime supervised release. For national context on how harsh these outcomes can be, see the Department of Justice.
Legal context
Under federal law, possession, receipt or distribution of child pornography carries substantial penalties. The key federal statute, 18 U.S.C. §2252A, sets prison terms that can range up to 10 to 20 years for many possession-related offenses, with prior convictions increasing mandatory minimum sentences in some circumstances. The law also allows courts to impose lengthy or even lifetime terms of supervised release for qualifying sex-offense convictions. The full statutory language is available at 18 U.S.C. §2252A.
What happens next
Woods will stay in federal custody until his transfer to the U.S. Bureau of Prisons to begin serving the 10-year sentence, according to KOKH. Once released, he will be subject to lifetime supervised release, a system that typically includes strict monitoring, limits on internet use and restrictions on contact with minors. The precise terms will be set by the court and enforced by federal probation.
