Man sentenced to 5 years in child porn case

A McHenry County man who was twice charged with possession of child pornography and once with having sex with his dog was sentenced to five years in prison Wednesday after his third child pornography-related arrest.

Michael J. Hartman, 34, of the 400 block of West Grant Highway in Marengo, has a long criminal history that dates back to 2004 when he was first arrested on child pornography charges when he lived in St. Charles. The newest charges, stemming from a September arrest, will put the registered sexual predator behind bars for five years.

Hartman was placed on two years of probation after the 2004 charges, but he violated his probation in 2006 when a random police check found pornographic images inside his St. Charles house.

Hartman was sentenced to three years in prison in 2007 on a plea agreement that involved pleading guilty to possession of child pornography. Prosecutors dropped two counts of possession of child pornography and two additional counts of sexual conduct with an animal. Police said in 2006 that Hartman's fiancee reported finding him having sex with his dog.

While searching his home in 2006, police also found a list that included descriptions of children Hartman had came in contact with through his job as a Batavia pizza delivery man, according to Daily Herald records.