WILLIAMSON COUNTY
Former officer pleads guilty to photographing topless Hutto teen
George Helms sentenced for taking photos of 16-year-old student in his office.

By Isadora Vail
AMERICAN-STATESMAN STAFF
Saturday, October 20, 2007

GEORGETOWN — A former police officer who had been assigned to Hutto High School admitted Friday to
photographing a 16-year-old student who undressed in his office this year.

George Wesley Helms, 36, pleaded guilty to sexual performance of a child and 26 counts of possession of child
pornography.

State District Judge Burt Carnes sentenced Helms to 20 years in prison for the sexual performance charge and 10
years for each of the child pornography charges. They will run concurrently, and Helms could be eligible for parole
in five years.

As part of the plea deal, Helms, who has been fired from the Hutto Police Department, surrendered his peace
officer's license.

"The very person who was supposed to be protecting students shamelessly took advantage of his position for lurid
sexual purposes," Williamson County District Attorney John Bradley said.

Earlier this year, Helms asked a 16-year-old Hutto High student to take off her clothes while he took pictures of her
in his office and gave her $50, an arrest affidavit said.

The affidavit said that the day before, March 6, Helms had taken several dozen photos of the girl, who was clothed,
in his office. When she returned the next day, Helms asked again whether he could photograph her, the affidavit
said. This time, according to court documents, Helms put a chair in front of his office door and asked the girl to
remove her shirt, bra and pants.

He then photographed her topless and gave her $50 "to induce her to stay a little longer," the affidavit said.

In court Friday, when Carnes asked whether Helms was sure about the plea deal, he responded, "Yes, sir. I want to
take responsibility."

Mark Brunner, Helms' attorney, said Helms pleaded guilty to avoid a possible life sentence.

Brunner said that if the case had gone to trial, Helms could have faced the equivalent of life in prison.

"I am very proud of my son," an emotional Martha Helms said after the hearing. "He is just doing this to save his
family more grief."

This bastard avoided a possible life sentence by simply pleading guilty.

Hopefully the family of this child gets a hold of him. He needs a good ass kicking.

WASHINGTON -Corrections Corp. of America spent almost $2.5 million in 2007 to lobby on legislation and
regulations related to the private prison industry.

The prison management company spent more than $1.1 million in the second half of 2007 to lobby the federal
government, according to a disclosure form posted online Thursday by the Senate's public records office.

The company lobbied on the privatization of Bureau of Indian Affairs prisons and on the Public Safety Act, which
would outlaw private prisons, as well as the Private Prison Information Act, which would force private prisons to
make public the same information government jails must provide.

Corrections Corp. spent more than $1.3 million in the first six months of 2007 to lobby on similar issues.

In addition to lobbying Congress, the company also lobbied the Bureau of Indian Affairs, Department of Homeland
Security, Department of Justice, Department of Labor and Office of Management and Budget.

Corrections Corp. lobbyists included Bart VerHulst, previously chief of staff for former Senate Majority Leader Bill
Frist, R-Tenn.; Mike Quinlan, former director of the Federal Bureau of Prisons; and Gus Puryear, previously
counsel to Frist and an adviser to Vice President Dick Cheney.

Lobbyists are required to disclose activities that could influence members of the executive and legislative branches,
under a federal law enacted in 1995.