A registered sex offender was sentenced to 16 years in prison after investigators found child sexual abuse material on his phone during an investigation into his online communications with someone he believed was a 12-year-old girl.
Casey J. Barnett, 34, of Springfield, was arrested in January 2025 after communicating with the person on social media since December 2024, according to evidence presented by Assistant District Attorney General Nathan Nichols during a sentencing hearing.
Barnett engaged in grooming behavior, discussed sex with the person and sent nude photos and videos of himself while requesting similar images. The person was actually an adult in Canada who was part of an online group that identifies suspected child predators and reports them to law enforcement.
After Barnett made plans to meet the person for sex, the Canadian citizen contacted Tennessee authorities. Investigators located Barnett at his workplace in Sumner County.
Gallatin Police Detective Jody Starks and Tennessee Department of Correction Sex Offender Supervision Unit Officer Brian Galloway searched Barnett’s phone and found four images that constituted child sexual abuse material, in addition to the messages with the Canadian citizen.
Barnett was on the Tennessee Sex Offender Registry at the time because of a 2010 conviction for aggravated sexual battery and solicitation of a minor. He served nine years in prison and was released in 2019.
Nichols argued for the maximum sentence, citing Barnett’s criminal history and the risk he posed to children. Criminal Court Judge Dee David Gay ordered Barnett to serve 16 years in prison, without the possibility of probation, parole or early release.
Barnett was taken into custody by court security immediately after the hearing.
The Sumner County District Attorney’s Office said it remains committed to seeking lengthy prison sentences for people who sexually exploit children and use social media to seek potential victims.
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