photo by: Kim Callahan/Journal-World

Jason Morrison is pictured at his plea hearing on Wednesday, Oct. 22, 2025, in Douglas County District Court.

A 42-year-old Topeka man was convicted Wednesday of two counts of sexual exploitation of a child after he pleaded no contest to the charges in Douglas County District Court.

In exchange for Jason Morrison’s plea, which came just days before his scheduled trial, the state agreed to drop two counts of the more serious felony of aggravated human trafficking.

Morrison is believed to have no prior criminal history for the purposes of state sentencing guidelines, in which case he would face 55 to 61 months on each count when he is sentenced on Dec. 30 — for a total of nine to 10 years in prison. The state is recommending 9.8 years, while the defense is requesting 9.1 years.

The parties have agreed that the defense will not make a motion for probation and that the two counts will run consecutively, though Judge Amy Hanley is bound only by the Kansas Sentencing Guidelines, not by the parties’ recommendations.

Morrison will also be required to register as a sex offender for 25 years.

The convictions arose out of offenses in February 2019 and May 2023 against two teen girls.

As a factual basis for Morrison’s plea, Hanley took judicial notice of evidence presented during Morrison’s two-part preliminary hearing last year.

As the Journal-World previously reported, Lawrence police indicated that they were alerted to the crimes after one girl’s relatives found nude images being sent to Morrison on the girl’s phone. Police said they located emails and text messages with explicit photos and videos and evidence that Morrison had paid hundreds of dollars in exchange for the sexual material.

One of the girls told police that Morrison had first contacted her when she was 16 and asked if she knew of any girls who wanted a “sugar daddy.” Morrison proposed that the girl send him photos and videos that he could sell.

Morrison was contacted by police in September of 2023 at the Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Leavenworth, where he reportedly agreed to waive his Miranda rights. Morrison then told police that he was a “hebephile” and was sexually attracted to girls as young as 13, police said.

Morrison said that he manipulated the girls into sending the photos because he “knew they were going through struggles themselves and that vulnerability would make them easy targets,” according to his arrest affidavit. Morrison said that he also sent the girls nude images of himself.

Morrison has been in custody since his arrest in September of 2023. District Attorney Dakota Loomis said that both girls intended to offer victim impact statements at Morrison’s sentencing in December.