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Brian Doyle

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For other uses, see Brian Doyle (disambiguation).

Brian J. Doyle (born April 7, 1950) was the deputy press secretary for the United States Department of Homeland Security. He was the fourth highest ranking official in the department's public affairs office. From 1975 to 2001, he worked on the Washington news desk for Time Magazine. He is currently serving five years in prison for sending sexually explicit emails to a minor.

Arrest, conviction and sentence

On April 4, 2006, Doyle was arrested at his Silver Spring, Maryland home on 23 charges related to the use of a computer to seduce a child and transmitting harmful materials to a minor. Polk County, Florida investigators alleged that the incident began March 14, 2006; Doyle was contacted by an undercover detective posing as a 14-year-old girl in an AOL chat room, and after numerous conversations online the two allegedly began engaging in sexually explicit conversation -- this included the sending "hard core" pornographic movie clips by Doyle to an undercover detective over the internet. Authorities say he sent pictures of himself, but that they were not sexually explicit. In one photo, Doyle's DHS security picture identification tag was clearly visible, according to Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd. Sheriff Judd has made national headlines for his aggressive tactics and sting operations involving online child solicitation. Polk County prosecutors also allege he could have held similar conversations online with others, Judd said, because at some points during online chats he would address the detective by the wrong name.

On September 19, 2006 Brian Doyle pleaded no contest to seven counts of using a computer to seduce a child, and 16 counts of transmitting harmful material to a minor. On November 17, 2006, he was sentenced to five years in prison, ten years of probation, and he must register as a sex offender.

Political repercussions

The arrest of Doyle, given that he was an official at the Department of Homeland Security Public Affairs Office, was an occasion for political bickering between Republicans and Democrats. The Department of Homeland Security reportedly brought in grief counselors as many as three times to support Doyle's work colleagues upset by his arrest.

Democrats argued that the Bush Administration should have better vetted its appointees. Republicans countered that Doyle was a registered Democrat who had made public statements criticizing Ronald Reagan , and that, in the e-mails he sent the undercover detective posing as a minor, he attacked George W. Bush by name

The Polk County sting operation, which reportedly included support from the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), coincided with United States Senate committee hearings critical of the United States Department of Justice (DOJ) effectiveness in addressing the issues of Internet pornography and sexual predators online.

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