Attorney General Griffin Announces Conviction of Rector Man on Child Pornography Charges Following An Arrest Made by Special Investigations Division

LITTLE ROCK – Attorney General Tim Griffin today issued the following statement announcing the conviction of Joseph M. Parrish, 37, of Rector on four counts of Distributing, Possessing, or Viewing of Matter Depicting Sexually Explicit Conduct Involving a Child:

“In January 2025, special agents from my Special Investigations Division arrested Joseph Parrish following an undercover investigation of an online peer-to-peer file-sharing system. I am grateful for the assistance of the Arkansas State Police and the Clay County Sheriff’s Office in the execution of the search warrant that led to the arrest.

“This week, Parrish pled guilty and was sentenced to 20 years in prison. He has already served 455 days in jail. After his release, he will remain under court supervision for an additional 10 years. Parrish must also register as a sex offender.

“I am grateful to my Special Investigations Division for its exemplary work on this case. I also want to thank Second Judicial District Prosecuting Attorney Sonia Hagood’s Office for its assistance in this case. It is deeply disturbing to see individuals exploit and take advantage of children. Let this conviction serve as a clear message: if you engage in this behavior, you will be found, you will be prosecuted, and you will face the full consequences of your actions. My office remains steadfast in its commitment to protecting children and holding offenders accountable. We will continue to pursue these cases relentlessly to ensure justice is served and our communities are made safer.”

To download a PDF of this release, click here.

About Attorney General Tim Griffin

Tim Griffin was sworn in as the 57th Attorney General of Arkansas on January 10, 2023, having previously served as the state’s 20th Lieutenant Governor from 2015-2023. From 2011-2015, Griffin served as the 24th representative of Arkansas’s Second Congressional District, where he served on the House Committee on Ways and Means, House Armed Services Committee, House Committee on Foreign Affairs, House Committee on Ethics and House Committee on the Judiciary while also serving as a Deputy Whip for the Majority.

Griffin is currently an officer in the Arkansas Army National Guard and holds the rank of colonel. Griffin served as an officer in the U.S. Army Reserve Judge Advocate General’s (JAG) Corps for more than 28 years. In 2005, Griffin was mobilized to active duty as an Army prosecutor at Fort Campbell, Kentucky, and served with the 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault) in Mosul, Iraq.

His previous assignments include serving as the Commander of the 2d Legal Operations Detachment in New Orleans, Louisiana; the Commander of the 134th Legal Operations Detachment at Fort Bragg, North Carolina; and as a Senior Legislative Advisor to the Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness at the Pentagon. Griffin earned a master’s degree in strategic studies as a Distinguished Honor Graduate from the U.S. Army War College, Carlisle Barracks, Pennsylvania.

Griffin also served as U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Arkansas, and Special Assistant to the President and Deputy Director of Political Affairs for President George W. Bush; Special Assistant to Assistant Attorney General Michael Chertoff, Criminal Division, U.S. Department of Justice; Special Assistant U.S. Attorney, U.S. Attorney’s Office, Eastern District of Arkansas; Senior Investigative Counsel, Government Reform and Oversight Committee, U.S. House of Representatives; and Associate Independent Counsel, Office of Independent Counsel David M. Barrett, In re: HUD Secretary Henry Cisneros.

Griffin is a graduate of Magnolia High School, Hendrix College in Conway, and Tulane Law School in New Orleans. He attended graduate school at Oxford University. He is admitted to practice law in Arkansas (active) and Louisiana (inactive). Griffin lives in Little Rock with his wife, Elizabeth, a Camden native, and their three children.

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