Retired Army Major Pleads Guilty to Attempted Child Molestations

A retired Army major who once oversaw the White House’s emergency communications has pleaded guilty to attempted child molestation after an Internet sting operation.

John W. Davis, 44, of Sandpoint, Idaho, agreed to a plea bargain in which he will be sentenced to as much as five years’ probation, his lawyer, Peter J. Hughes, said Thursday.

Davis entered the plea Wednesday in a San Diego court. Prosecutors agreed to drop other charges, including sending pornographic material to children. If he had been convicted on all 10 original counts, he could have faced seven years in jail.

Davis was caught in an Internet sting when a police officer posed as a mother who told Davis that he could have sex with her 12- and 14-year-old daughters. He was arrested March 23 after arriving in San Diego for what he believed was to be a meeting with the mother.

Sentencing is scheduled for Aug. 1.

Davis, who was once responsible for the White House Communications Agency, worked as the director of the Emergency Broadcast System, now called the Emergency Alert System, which allows the government to reach the public in emergencies.