A Douglas man facing dozens of child sex exploitation and pornography charges who was caught twice allegedly trying to flee Wyoming is fighting not to lose the $250,000 in cash someone put up for his bond.
John Charles Smallbone, 38, was in a Converse County courtroom Monday after Wyoming law enforcement brought him back from a San Francisco County jail last week.
That’s where he was caught less than four hours after skipping his arraignment on 72 felony charges July 28.
Now Smallbone is back behind bars in Douglas, has had his bond raised to a cool $1 million, and is arguing against a prosecution motion to forfeit his $250,000 for failing to appear.
“The Defendant does not deny that he failed to appear at the arraignment scheduled for July 28, 2026,” according to a motion objecting to the state’s effort to claw back the bond money, both filed Monday.
One of the arguments outlined by Smallbone’s public defender, Denny Harts, is that the $250,000 “is well over the amount that the state should have expended in his apprehension.”
He also argues that the money put up wasn’t Smallbone’s, that he “does not have the funds to repay the money to the elderly woman that posted the bond for his release” and that he’s now in jail on a bond so high he has “no ability to post.”
That elderly person referenced in Smallbone’s motion is a woman from Colorado, according to a receipt in his public-facing court file.
Smallbone also will face more criminal charges now that he’s been returned, according to Converse County Deputy Attorney Nathan Shumway, who indicated that would happen during the July 28 hearing.
Through his attorney on July 28, Smallbone informed the court that he didn’t feel safe if he showed up to the courthouse in person.
Those amended charges aren’t yet in the court file, nor has a new date been set for another arraignment hearing, the Converse County District Court reports.
The Charges (So Far)
Smallbone was arrested in Colorado last month on a fugitive warrant, then was allowed to go free July 23 on a personal recognizance bond instead of being held for Wyoming authorities to come get him.
Then he no-showed his July 28 arraignment in Converse County District Court, but was caught less than four hours later in California.
“I cannot recall in my entire 36-year career getting a bond of that size posted, let alone someone absconding after it,” Converse County Undersheriff Chris Walsh told Cowboy State Daily last week.
Now that he’s back in Converse County, Smallbone will face those 72 charges alleging child sex abuse and exploitation. And there will likely be more added.
Converse County Deputy Attorney Nate Shumway said during the July 28 hearing that his office is filing amended charges against Smallbone that include the 72 he already had been hit with, plus more that he’s since picked up.
The list of charges against Smallbone is long — and could change after any new potential charges are filed — including:
• 1 count of first-degree sexual abuse of a minor.
• 36 counts of possessing child pornography.
• 16 counts of using a video camera to record intimate areas of another person without consent.
• 18 counts of knowingly manufacturing, generating, or creating child pornography.
• 1 count of possessing more than 3 ounces of marijuana (1.3 pounds).
‘I Want To See You Naked’
He landed on the radar of the Converse County Sheriff’s Office after the mother of an underage girl reported concerning interactions her daughter had with Smallbone on May 9.
The girl was in a vehicle with Smallbone and others when he allegedly typed “if you suck me, I’ll lick you” on his phone and showed it to the girl, according to an affidavit of probable cause filed in his case.
“He also mouthed the words, ‘I want to see you naked,’” the affidavit says.
Smallbone later denied mouthing anything or showing the girl any messages.
That, along with other alleged disturbing interactions with the girl at Smallbone’s home that evening, started an investigation that revealed a trove of photos, videos and other child sexual abuse material (CSAM) on his electronic devices, the affidavit says.
The investigation also showed Smallbone had been convicted in 2002 of sexual assault on a child by a person in a position of trust in Douglas County, Colorado.
He also had registered as a sex offender in Wyoming in 2014, but it was “later determined not to be required to register in Wyoming due to him being a juvenile at the time of his adjudication in Colorado,” according to the affidavit.
That was in reference to a 2001 case when Smallbone was 12 and was accused of sexually assaulting a 5-year-old girl, the affidavit says.
While in treatment for that incident, he disclosed he also had sexual contact with at least seven other children, and five were younger than him at the time of the sexual contact.
If convicted of the current charges against him with maximum consecutive sentences, Smallbone could face up to 791 years in prison and fines of up to $710,000.
The most serious is the sexual abuse of a minor charge, which calls for a sentence of between 25 and 50 years.
Greg Johnson can be reached at greg@cowboystatedaily.com.
