Atlanta prison doctor indicted

Justin Neisler, a former physician from Denver, appeared in federal court in Atlanta on Wednesday to answer to two new counts of possessing child sexual abuse material. The indictment adds to his existing 23-year sentence for producing the same material. Prosecutors in the Northern District of Georgia filed the new charges on Oct. 27, alleging he kept the images while incarcerated at the Federal Correctional Institution in Atlanta.

Neisler is the latest of four convicts to face new charges in an investigation that began in March 2026. Federal Bureau of Prisons investigators discovered that inmates at the facility were actively trading digital files of child sexual abuse material. The probe revealed that at least two inmates smuggled in cellphones to access the dark web. They downloaded files onto memory cards removed from MP3 players and printed the images on the prison library copy machine. Some prints were placed on the reverse side of religious texts to hide them.

The investigation identified Dustin Bishop, 38, of Raleigh, North Carolina, as a central figure in the distribution network. Bishop, who is serving a 10-year sentence, was indicted on Aug. 25 and arraigned on Aug. 31. He allegedly sold the printed material to other inmates, including Jacob Breslin, 34, of Merritt Island, Florida, and Harold Nuckols, 29, of Henrico, Virginia. Breslin is serving a 15-year sentence, while Nuckols has a sentence of more than four years. Both were indicted on July 28 and arraigned on Aug. 7.

Investigators also found a contraband phone under Neisler's pillow containing the files. During the search, they recovered approximately 450 images and videos of child sexual abuse material from the prison. The group also traded obscene depictions of fictitious children, including illustrations of young animated characters in explicit scenarios.

U.S. Attorney Theodore Hertzberg stated that the defendants continued to victimize children for their gratification despite being behind bars. He said contraband phones pose a clear risk to public safety and that his office would seek consecutive prison time for those who commit new crimes in custody. If convicted, Neisler and Nuckols face a minimum of 10 years in prison without parole. Bishop and Breslin face a minimum of 15 years. Judges may order these new sentences to be served consecutively to their current terms.

The next scheduled court dates for the remaining defendants have not been publicly detailed beyond their recent arraignment dates. Neisler's arraignment was the most recent procedural step reported by the U.S. Attorney’s Office.