District Attorney J. Collin Sims reports that David Allen Hammond, Jr., 47, of Pearl River/Slidell, pleaded guilty as charged on Thursday, November 5, 2026, to the remaining counts of child sex abuse and child pornography production that had been remanded for retrial.
Before District Judge Tara Farris Zeller, Hammond pleaded guilty as charged rather than proceeding to a second trial. Judge Zeller sentenced Hammond to 115 years in state prison. This sentence will run consecutively to the 15-year prison term Hammond is currently serving for his prior affirmed convictions, ensuring he will spend the rest of his life behind bars. ADA Taylor Nicholson handled the prosecution for the state.
Hammond was originally convicted by a St. Tammany Parish jury in May 2019 on 28 total counts, including aggravated crime against nature, sexual battery of a minor, production and possession of juvenile pornography, and obstruction of justice, resulting in an initial 175-year sentence. In August 2020, the Louisiana First Circuit Court of Appeal affirmed four of the convictions (totaling 15 years in prison) but set aside 24 counts based on non-unanimous 11-1 jury verdicts pursuant to the U.S. Supreme Court decision in Ramos v. Louisiana, remanding those counts to the 22nd Judicial District Court for a new trial.
The investigation began in December 2016 when St. Tammany Parish Sheriff’s Office deputies located a 14-year-old girl who had fled Hammond’s residence. The victim disclosed years of severe physical and sexual abuse, leading detectives to execute a search warrant at Hammond’s home. Investigators uncovered thousands of images and videos containing child sexual abuse material involving the young victim.
Before sentencing, the victim addressed the court with an impactful victim impact statement detailing the trauma inflicted upon her, her survival, and the closure brought by his conviction and final admission of guilt.
“This defendant subjected a young, innocent victim to horrific abuse and tried everything possible to escape long-term accountability, including attempting to destroy critical hard drive evidence while locked in jail,” said District Attorney Collin Sims. “Thanks to the courage of the victim who stood up in court to confront him, along with the tireless work of our prosecution team and law enforcement partners, this dangerous predator has finally acknowledged his guilt and will spend the rest of his life behind bars. Justice has prevailed, and our community is safer with him locked away.”