H.L. Moody Jr., who’s been a political consultant and Pulaski County employee, appeared in federal court Tuesday on a charge of possessing and distributing child pornography.

He was named in a sealed charge Friday. The case was unsealed today.

Moody was a former Pulaski County Democratic Party chair and was communications director for the state Democratic Party from July 2015 until February 2017. Since then, he’d been a special events coordinator for Pulaski County Youth Services. He also continued to do political work, including serving as campaign manager for Tippi McCullough’s successful race for state House from Little Rock this year.

The Arkansas Democrat-Gazette reported that he was fired from his county job Monday after the county learned of the investigation. The newspaper quoted a spokesman as saying Moody had an administrative job and did not work with children in that post, but organized fund-raising events.


Moody appeared before a federal magistrate this morning and remained in federal custody. A government release said an undercover investigation observed Moody in an online chat room where child pornography was displayed and he also was observed distributing it.