photo by: Kansas Department of Corrections

Matthew J. Gammill, pictured in December 2019

Updated at 7:22 p.m. Tuesday:

A Lawrence man has been charged in connection with child pornography for a second time, according to court records.

Matthew Joseph Gammill, 41, was charged with six counts of internet trading in child pornography at a first appearance in Douglas County District Court Tuesday afternoon, according to court and jail records. All six, midlevel-severity felonies, are alleged to have occurred between Oct. 14 and 17, 2019.

Gammill’s previous defense attorney pointed to mental illness as a contributing factor, according to previous Journal-World coverage.

Gammill was charged in January 2016 and convicted the following summer after pleading no contest to one count of sexual exploitation of a child, the Journal-World previously reported. In that case, he was sentenced to 38 months in prison; court records indicate that he also had lifetime post-release supervision.

At a sentencing hearing in that case on Dec. 1, 2017, his defense attorney at the time said Gammill had shared that he had been sexually abused as a child, though no one was ever charged. He more recently sought counseling but found that he could not afford therapy.

Following a 2009 police report, Gammill admitted to detectives that he possessed and viewed discs containing child pornography, now-Senior Assistant District Attorney Alice Walker said in a court filing preceding the sentencing. However, he was never charged following that report, and as part of the plea agreement in the 2016 case, the state agreed not to charge him in connection with the earlier report, she said.

“This is not a victimless crime,” since-retired Judge Paula Martin said at Gammill’s sentencing. “If people didn’t view child pornography, the children wouldn’t be exploited in this way, and this conduct just continues that exploitation.”

Gammill told the judge that the case had been a “very humbling experience,” the Journal-World reported.

“I can’t even begin to express the amount of shame that I feel because of this,” he said. “I am very sorry for what I did.”

Gammill served approximately 28 months and was released Aug. 12, 2019, according to Kansas Department of Corrections and court records. He was eligible for good time credit.

A judge on Tuesday set Gammill’s bond at $100,000 cash or surety, online court records show, but he’s also being held on a KDOC warrant, according to jail records. His next court appearance is set for Thursday afternoon.