Dayton Jones appeared to be a free man in December when Gov. Matt Bevin commuted his sentence to time served for a brutal sodomy that almost killed a 15-year-old boy.

But on Tuesday, Jones was charged with a federal offense stemming from the same crime — producing child pornography, which carries a mandatory minimum sentence of 15 years in prison.

The Courier Journal reported in January that the office of U.S. Attorney Russell Coleman was investigating whether Jones, 26, violated a federal law and could face new charges.

Jones, the grandchild of an affluent Christian County couple, was freed by Bevin after serving only three years of a 15-year term for using a sex toy to assault a boy who was passed out drunk. His clemency prompted a furor in Western Kentucky.

Jones’ attorney, Darren Wolff, said in an interview that the federal charge is vindictive and obviously in retaliation for Bevin's commutation.

Wolff also said his client is a "pawn" in an ongoing dispute between Bevin and Coleman, neither of whom like each other, he said, and who are aligned with competing factions of the state Republican Party.

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But in a news release Tuesday, Coleman said, "This prosecution is about one thing and one thing only: Mr. Jones’ conduct in harming someone’s child in the Western District of Kentucky in violation of federal law."

Jones is charged with making a video during the 2014 assault that he shared with others on social media.

He pleaded guilty in Christian Circuit Court in 2014 to sodomy, wanton endangerment, and distribution of material depicting the sexual performance of a minor.

The federal prosecution for the same crime does not constitute double jeopardy because the federal and state governments are considered separate “sovereigns,” according to Louisville criminal defense attorney Scott C. Cox, who practices frequently in federal court.

He said it is rare for the federal government to take a “second swing at somebody” unless prosecutors believe there was a miscarriage of justice in the state court proceedings.

A five-year statute of limitations exists for prosecuting most federal crimes, but there are exceptions, including for child sex and pornography cases.

Jones was one of four young men who pleaded guilty for their roles in the assault on the victim, who suffered a perforated bowel and had to undergo lifesaving surgery the next day.

Read more:Bevin said only co-defendants implicated Jones. He was wrong

On Dec. 9, Bevin commuted Jones’ sentence to time served, giving no official explanation for the clemency.

He later told a Courier Journal reporter that he did so because there was no corroborating evidence — "zero, zero" — implicating Jones.

But a Courier Journal review found that other witnesses besides Jones' co-defendants implicated him and that Jones implicated himself in a text message in which he admitted inserting a sex toy in the victim’s anus.

He also said, “I was for sure not the only one. Everybody did it."

If convicted, Jones faces up to 30 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. He was taken into custody and faces a detention hearing Thursday.

Coleman, an acolyte of Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, who has feuded with Bevin, announced in December that his office was investigating if any of the state inmates Bevin pardoned also committed federal crimes.

Coleman said in a statement that month that he was particularly concerned about the "risk to the public by those previously convicted of sex offenses, who by virtue of the state pardon, will not fall under any post-release supervision or be required to register as sex offenders."

Jones is the first person granted clemency by Bevin who has been charged federally. He was one of 670 offenders who received pardons or commutations from Bevin before he left office.

Previously:Jones must register as sex offender for life after Bevin freed him

The federal case was investigated by the Christian County Sheriff’s Office, with assistance from the FBI, Kentucky State Police, Kentucky Office of the Attorney General and the U.S. Marshals Service.

Jones also faces charges in Oldham Circuit Court for promoting contraband while he was still in prison and for being a persistent felony offender.

He was freed on those charges on a $5,000 cash bond. Prosecutors are trying to revoke it because Jones allegedly gave a false address.

The state Department of Corrections also issued a warrant for Jones' arrest for failing to register as a sex offender, but Wolff said Jones registered Monday, subject to the outcome of a lawsuit he filed last month contesting that requirement.

Reach Kala Kachmar: 502-582-4469; kkachmar@courierjournal.com. Reach Andrew Wolfson: 502-582-7189; awolfson@courier-journal.com; Twitter: @adwolfson.