On Sept. 14, 2026, James Virgil Parks, 39, of Amity, was sentenced to 960 months (80 years) in the Arkansas Department of Corrections for 25 counts of possession of child sexual assault material (CSAM). The sentencing recommendation was made by Clark County Prosecutor Dan Turner following the investigation and discovery of CSAM in the possession of Parks and was imposed by Circuit Judge Blake Batson.
On February 6, 2025, the Internet Crimes Against Children division of the Arkansas State Police initiated an investigation based on a cybertip forwarded by the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC). The tip depicted an underage child engaged in sexually explicit conduct, leading Special Agent Chris Harper with the Arkansas State Police to prepare a search warrant that was ultimately executed at Parks’s residence in Amity on Feb. 11, 2025. Upon additional investigation, Agent Harper discovered images depicting CSAM and other pornographic images.
Parks had previously been convicted of the offense of Internet Stalking of a Child in Crawford County, Arkansas on Feb. 8, 2011, and sentenced to 36 months in the Arkansas Department of Corrections with an additional 84 months suspended imposition of sentence.
Clark County Prosecutor Dan Turner credited Special Agent Chris Harper and thanked the work of the Arkansas ICAC team. “Prosecution of child victimization and child sexual assault material remains a priority for prosecution,” Turner said. “These offenses involve the manipulation and abuse of children all over the globe and the creation, exchange and possession of this material is a threat to children and families everywhere.”
Turner added that these are challenging cases to investigate and prosecute and noted that successful prosecution of these cases is critically dependent on the experience, expertise and dedication of the ICAC investigators with Arkansas State Police like Special Agent Harper. “I am encouraged by this result and hope it sends a message that Clark County will not tolerate the abuse of children through CSAM or the victimization of children,” Turner said.