A Lehighton man was sentenced to a county prison term on Monday on a charge of child pornography.

Derek Maxum Hedmeck, 27, was sentenced by President Judge Roger N. Nanovic II to serve five to 23 months on the child porn charge and the same term on a charge of criminal use of a communication facility. The terms run concurrently. Hedmeck previously pleaded guilty to the charges.Hedmeck was arrested after Palmerton police contacted state police at Lehighton on Sept. 30, 2012, to say they had a cellphone containing child pornography. The cellphone had been found by a borough resident the day before at the Bowmanstown Diner. Trooper Brian Silliman sent the phone to the Computer Crimes Unit for analysis, which confirmed the child pornography. Police searched Hedmeck's home in Franklin Township on Feb. 19, 2013.Hedmeck admitted to Silliman that he had downloaded child pornography on the phone, which he then lost at the Bowmanstown Diner.Police confiscated a laptop, hard drive and thumb drive, all containing child pornography, at Hedmeck's home. The devices were also sent for analysis.State police interviewed Hedmeck at the barracks on Feb. 20, 2013. He told them he downloaded the child pornography onto his laptop in 2010 using "LimeWire" or "Frostwire."Hedmeck said that he searched using the words "barely legal" and "mafia" when the name "Jenny" popped up. He downloaded and looked at the files, which were images of a young girl he thought was between 12 to 13 years old.Hedmeck said he continued to download child pornography up to a month. He told troopers he used an app for cellphones to download the images, which he backed up onto his computer.Hedmeck said that he searched using the same words and downloaded files under "mafia sex." He also acknowledged intentionally searching using the name "Jenny" and downloaded a video which he believed was the same young girl he previously viewed.Trooper Scott Sotack of the Computer Crimes Unit said that he analyzed Hedmeck's cellphone and found 54 images and two videos depicting child pornography. Hedmeck's laptop and hard drive were also analyzed. The laptop contained nine images and six videos depicting child pornography. The hard drive contained 13 images and four videos depicting child pornography.Hedmeck told Nanovic, "I'm here, not the person who did this crime." He added, "I left my mind wander and let it go further and further." He continued, "I'm disturbed by what I did."Hedmeck said he was using illegal substances at the time, and that led him to make poor decisions. He said, "I want to make amends to my family and friends."Defense Attorney Matthew Rapa said his client was embarrassed by what occurred. He said from the first time state police contacted him about the child pornography, Hedmeck cooperated in the investigation.Nanovic noted that Hedmeck was given a break by the commonwealth in letting him plead to lesser charges and agreeing that the prison term be served in the county prison.An evaluation by the state Sexual Assessment Board determined Hedmeck was not a violent sexual predator. The determination means he will have to register for the next 15 years as a sexual offender rather than life, as he would if he had been found to be a violent sexual predator.Nanovic also ordered Hedmeck to submit to a sexual offenders evaluation, supply a DNA sample, get both drug and alcohol and mental health evaluations, pay court costs of about $1,000 and pay a $50 per month supervision fee when released on parole.He will begin the jail term at 5 p.m. March 18. He was granted work release privileges.