Randall Wolford

Randall Howard Wolford was born on January 11, 1954.

Less than two hours after the conversation, Wolford drove to the Murphy, Texas, sting house. He assumed that the mother of the decoy was a technology executive away on business in Austin. He complimented the house and the pool table. When Wagner questioned him about having sex on a pool table, he answered that he had done it once and that it was the only thing he was good at on a pool table. As Wolford walked towards the kitchen, Chris Hansen stepped in and told Wolford to make himself at home. Chris and Wolford shook hands as they introduced themselves. Wolford hesitantly started helping himself to some candy before Chris inquired about his age; Wolford claimed he was "forty... nine." Wolford said he would have remained seated on the stool until the girl's mother returned. Wolford then acknowledged having a twenty-six-year-old daughter and said that if she were a minor, he wouldn't be comfortable with an adult man seeing her.

When Chris read, "I would love to taste you Sequoia," and "Show you how good it feels to have a man down on you," Wolford confessed that he wrote those quotes, but he insisted that he would have waited for the girl's mother. Chris again challenged Wolford's claims by pointing out that his conversation after entering the sting house differed from the one he had earlier. Wolford said he told the girl about his sexual encounter on a pool table because she inquired about it. Chris questioned what would be the next step, to which Wolford replied that he would have talked to her. Wolford then brought up Christianity when Chris didn't believe his arguments; in his words, "God is [his] savior," and he insisted that he was telling the truth. Chris subsequently questioned whether his faith compelled him to visit children who are home alone. Wolford stated he "screwed up big time." Wolford picked up his drink and left when Chris disclosed who he was and the cameras came out. Wolford was then arrested by police and taken into custody.

In September 2008, Wolford was charged in a federal complaint; the following month, a grand jury in Fort Worth indicted him. He was charged with one count of attempting to persuade, induce, entice, or coerce a minor to engage in criminal sexual activity. He pled not guilty. The lone witness supporting Wolford at the trial said that Wolford had previously engaged in a sort of roleplaying in which he considered Jennifer to be an adult pretending to be a child. A jury found Wolford guilty of the felony offense after a one-day trial before United States District Judge John A. McBryde. He was scheduled to be sentenced on April 17, 2009. Judge John McBryde sentenced Wolford to 292 months in prison and lifetime registration as a sex offender. His earliest projected chance at parole is December 22, 2029 when he will be 75.

In July 2010, Wolford contested both his verdict and punishment. According to Wolford, the district court erred in the jury instructions, the testimonial evidence admitting without cross-examination, the evidence admission that was overly prejudicial, the calculation of his guideline sentencing range, and the imposition of a substantively inappropriate sentence. Wolford contended that the district court miscalculated by neglecting to tell the jury that the First Amendment protected his speech if he believed he was conversing with an adult over the Internet. When it was brought up about being caught in a Dateline sting, Wolford contended that including some of the interview transcripts violated his rights under the Sixth Amendment's Confrontation Clause because Chris was not a live trial witness.

The conversation log, according to the court, featured remarks from Wolford in which he claimed to have previously raped a minor and expressed interest in having sex with them. Those comments raised questions about Wolford's claim that he thought he was role-playing a game with an adult. The district court also found that the pornographic photos strongly motivation and intent supported Wolfo. They were employed to disprove Wolford's assertion that he didn't think the people he spoke to were minors and to demonstrate that he had the motivation and intent to coerce a child into doing unlawful, lewd acts.

Wolford contended that it was improper for the district court to allow his bookmark list and still pictures of a young girl and him engaging in sexual activity that he directed Jen to as evidence. Additionally, he pointed Jen to some of his bookmarked "favorites" websites. He claimed that this evidence unfairly prejudiced him. However, because the evidence was crucial to the offense being charged , persuading a minor to engage in unlawful sexual behavior - it was crucial to the government's strategy for the case as a whole. Wolford further argued that the district court miscalculated in determining that his lack of a plea bargain qualified him for an upward departure for possessing child pornography even though he was not charged with having it. Wolford then alleged insufficient evidence to support the district court's factual conclusions. Hence, the court miscalculated applying an upward departure for under-represented criminal history.

By a preponderance of the evidence, the district court determined that Wolford had raped two adult women and had previously acknowledged trying to seduce a minor during the Dateline NBC sting. Wolford argued that his 292-month sentence is harsh and substantially irrational. The district court made mention of Wolford's earlier criminal behavior, including the rapes and the admitted charge of attempting to entice a minor, at the sentencing hearing. It emphasized that those offenses did not lead to criminal convictions. They said that Wolford's criminal history category significantly understates the seriousness of his past offenses and the potential for Wolford to conduct additional sex-related crimes in the future. At sentencing, the district court found that an upward departure would further the goals and was appropriate given the circumstances. For the reasons mentioned above, Wolford's conviction and imprisonment were upheld.

Randall Wolford’s first RSO photo post-release.

Because federal inmates must complete at least 85% of their sentences before being freed, Wolford won't be eligible for parole until December 22nd, 2029, when he is seventy-five-years-old. However, Randall was able to transfer to a halfway house in Dallas for the final three years of his mandatory sentencing.

Randall is missing half of his right index finger, which is especially noticeable during close-ups on his face during his interview.