STEWART v. STATE (2026)

MEMORANDUM DECISION

Case Summary

[1] After Zachary Stewart pled guilty to twelve counts of Level 4 felony child exploitation and seven counts of Level 5 felony possession of child pornography, the trial court imposed an aggregate sentence of 140 years, which included sentences for the Level 5 felonies that exceeded the sentencing range authorized by statute. Because both parties agree that the trial court imposed illegal sentences for the Level 5 felonies, we reverse in part and remand for resentencing.

Facts and Procedural History

[2] In 2022 and 2023, Stewart possessed and disseminated in Knox County pictures and videos that depicted sexual acts involving young children. As a result—and based upon the discovery of other evidence of crimes against children—the State charged Stewart on March 3, 2023, with three counts of Level 1 felony child molesting, three counts of Level 2 felony sexual misconduct with a minor, two counts of Level 4 felony incest, two counts of Level 5 felony child exploitation, and two counts of Level 5 felony possession of child pornography.

[3] On September 10, 2025, the State amended the charging information and added twelve counts of Level 4 felony child exploitation and twelve counts of Level 5 felony possession of child pornography. The next day, Stewart agreed to plead guilty to the twelve counts of Level 4 felony child exploitation and to seven of the twelve counts of Level 5 felony possession of child pornography. In exchange, the State dismissed the remaining counts. Sentencing was left to the trial court's discretion.

[4] On November 25, 2025, the trial court imposed an aggregate sentence of 140 years. Stewart was sentenced to twelve years of incarceration each for four of the Level 4 felony child-exploitation offenses, and ten years each for the remaining eight Level 4 felony child-exploitation offenses, with the sentences ordered to run consecutively. The trial court also sentenced Stewart to twelve years for each of the Level 5 felony possession-of-child-pornography offenses, which were ordered to be served concurrently with one another but consecutive to the sentences imposed for the Level 4 felony offenses.

Discussion and Decision

[5] Stewart contends, and the State concedes, that the trial court imposed illegal sentences for the seven Level 5 felony offenses. In general, sentencing lies within the discretion of the trial court. Henderson v. State, 769 N.E.2d 172, 179 (Ind. 2002). However, “[a] sentence that is contrary to or violative of a penalty mandated by statute is illegal in the sense that it is without statutory authorization.” Rhodes v. State, 698 N.E.2d 304, 307 (Ind. 1998) (citation omitted). Simply put, a sentence is illegal if it is not within the prescribed statutory sentencing range. See Anderson v. State, 269 N.E.3d 817, 822 (Ind. 2025).

[6] Where, as here, a person is convicted of a Level 5 felony, Indiana Code section 35-50-2-6(b) provides that the person can be sentenced to “a fixed term of between one (1) and six (6) years, with the advisory sentence being three (3) years.” For each of Stewart's seven Level 5 felony possession-of-child-pornography offenses, however, the trial court imposed twelve-year sentences. Because the trial court imposed sentences that exceeded the maximum sentencing range authorized by statute, these sentences are illegal and must be reduced. We therefore reverse the trial court's sentencing order and remand for resentencing.

[7] We reverse the judgment of the trial court in part and remand for resentencing.

Bradford, Judge.

Tavitas, C.J., and Felix, J., concur.