United States v Weber
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United States v. Weber is a federal sentencing appeal involving an AI face-swap service used to create altered child sexual abuse images. On October 8, 2026, the Tenth Circuit affirmed Jeremy Alan Weber’s 300-month prison sentence after rejecting his challenge to its substantive reasonableness.[1]
Background and sentence
The opinion recounts that Weber used an AI service to alter images to depict people he knew, including minors and adults. He pleaded guilty to five transportation counts and one possession count. The district court calculated a Guidelines range of 151–188 months and imposed an upward variance to 300 months under 18 U.S.C. § 3553(a).[1]
October 8, 2026 appellate ruling
Applying abuse-of-discretion review, the panel held that the district court adequately justified the variance through the conduct’s breadth, additional victims, breach of trust and victim impact. It rejected Weber’s characterization of the conduct as mere possession, emphasizing that the altered images created a further group of victims. The court also considered the risk that the images could become public and distinguished earlier Second Circuit sentencing decisions involving different conduct.[1]
The order is not binding precedent except under law-of-the-case, res judicata and collateral-estoppel doctrines; it may be cited for persuasive value under the applicable federal and circuit rules.[1]