Ex-CNN producer John Griffin, who reached a plea deal late last year with federal prosecutors on child sexual abuse charges in Vermont, is asking a judge for more time to challenge a pre-sentence report in the case calling for up to life imprisonment, based on federal guidelines.
Griffin, 45, formerly of Stamford, Connecticut, pleaded guilty in December in U.S. District Court in Burlington to one of the three charges brought against him of “using a facility of interstate commerce to attempt to persuade, induce, entice or coerce a minor to engage in unlawful sexual activity,” according to the indictment against him.
Two remaining charges were dismissed as part of the plea deal, which would allow the judge to impose a penalty of not less than 10 years and up to the remainder of his life, the filings stated.
Judge William K. Sessions III ordered the federal probation office to conduct the pre-sentencing investigation prior to a hearing set for April 24, when he plans to impose Griffin’s prison term.