Patrick Kerwin
Pleaded guilty; awaiting sentencing. Patrick Kerwin, 43, of Java Center, New York, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge John L. Sinatra, Jr., to possession of child pornography involving a prepubescent minor — a charge carrying a maximum of 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine — after telling Lancaster police himself in November 2025 that he had exchanged messages with underage girls and possessed child pornography. Sentencing is scheduled for February 15, 2027.
Introduction
Patrick Kerwin is a 43-year-old Java Center, New York, man who pleaded guilty in federal court in the Western District of New York to possession of child pornography involving a prepubescent minor. The plea was announced October 16, 2026, by U.S. Attorney Michael DiGiacomo: Kerwin entered the plea before Judge Sinatra, and sentencing is scheduled for February 15, 2027.
The case reached federal prosecutors because of what Kerwin himself told police. The plea is the result of an investigation by the FBI, under the direction of Special Agent-in-Charge Allen D. Davis, II, and the Lancaster Police Department, under the direction of Chief William Gummo.
Background Information
On November 19, 2025, Lancaster Police officers encountered Kerwin at a local restaurant. According to the plea agreement, he advised them that he had exchanged text messages with underage girls, possessed child pornography on his cell phone, and had been involved in previous “underage relationships.”
Kerwin subsequently consented to the seizure and search of his cell phone and voluntarily agreed to be interviewed at the Lancaster Police Department, during which he admitted that he messaged underage girls using social media and encrypted applications.
The Controversy or Incident That Led to Their Cancellation
The conduct Kerwin admitted began with the messaging: voluntary admissions that he contacted underage girls over social media and encrypted apps, building on what he told officers at the restaurant about prior “underage relationships.” The forensic examination of the phone he consented to surrender recovered 13 images and 81 videos of child pornography.
Some of the images and videos depicted the sexual abuse of an infant or toddler, as well as depictions of violence. The possession count to which he pleaded guilty — involving a prepubescent minor — carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine, with sentencing set for February 15, 2027, before Judge Sinatra.
Public Reaction and Consequences
The documented consequences are procedural: the guilty plea before Judge Sinatra, the pending February 15, 2027 sentencing, and the forensic record — 13 images and 81 videos, including abuse of an infant or toddler — that the plea acknowledges. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Maeve E. Huggins.
The release contains no public commentary; the facts it documents are the self-report to Lancaster officers, the consented search, the admissions in the voluntary interview, and the plea.
Current Status
As of the October 16, 2026 announcement, Patrick Kerwin, 43, has pleaded guilty to possession of child pornography involving a prepubescent minor and awaits sentencing on February 15, 2027, before U.S. District Judge John L. Sinatra, Jr. The charge carries a maximum of 20 years’ imprisonment and a $250,000 fine.
Impact on Their Career/Life
The case file Kerwin created against himself is unusual in its origin: a restaurant encounter with local officers on November 19, 2025, where he volunteered that he had texted underage girls, held child pornography on his phone, and had prior “underage relationships.” Ten months later, that self-report stands as a federal guilty plea with 94 child-sexual-abuse files behind it and a February 2027 sentencing date that will determine his term.
Sources
- U.S. Attorney’s Office, Western District of New York, “Java Center man pleads guilty to possession of child pornography,” October 16, 2026 — source