INDIANAPOLIS – IUPUI's former longtime volleyball coach — who was in his 22nd season when he was charged with 11 felony counts of possession of child pornography — will serve no prison time, despite having hundreds of sexually explicit images and videos of young girls.

Instead, Steven Payne, of Indianapolis, has been sentenced to four years of probation, is not allowed internet access at home or at work and is required to take part in psychological and mental health treatment and evaluation.

Payne, 55, had 146 images and videos of child pornography on two thumb drives when police arrested him in November, according to court documents. Police at the time said there were multiple images on each video and estimated Payne had nearly 200 images of underage girls in his possession.

During an interview at his home, Payne told police he had videos of girls "possibly under the age of 18," Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Detective Kurt Spivey wrote in an affidavit.

A detective found about 120 videos and images of possible child pornography on a thumb drive taken from Payne's backpack, court documents said. Police also found about 26 videos of child pornography on another thumb drive, Spivey said in the probable cause affidavit.

Court files:FBI tied Donald Trump and top aides to 2016 effort to silence a porn star

Payne was charged with 11 felony counts — including one level 5 felony count of possession of child pornography with an aggravating factor, meaning the nature of the image was more exploitative — which could have been punishable by up to 31 years in prison.

But Payne pleaded guilty in March to the most serious charge, the Level 5 felony, in exchange for having the other 10 counts dismissed. The Level 5 felony carried a sentencing range of one to six years, according to Indiana law.

The Marion County Prosecutor's office told IndyStar that during the sentencing hearing, "the state argued that the defendant should serve his sentence in the Indiana Department of Correction. Ultimately, the court imposed a four-year suspended sentence followed by four years of probation," said spokesman Michael Leffler of the prosecutor's office.

"This gives me control over him for a longer period of time," Marion Superior Court Judge Grant W. Hawkins, who presided over the case, told IndyStar.

A sentence of four years in prison could have meant Payne would be free from supervision much earlier.

Avenatti: R. Kelly paid $2 million to prevent testimony in 2008 child porn trial

"The plea agreement capped initial incarceration at two years," he said. "With a two-year sentence, he’s out in 18 months or less."

The agreement did allow for a sentence in excess of two years if Hawkins suspended the jail time.

"Four years of probation is four years of probation," he said. "It can't be reduced." During that time, Payne will be subject to polygraph testing and searches. He will not be allowed to have devices that have internet access or use of social media.

If Payne violates his probation at any time, Hawkins said, "I can still put him in (prison)."

"In addition to this sentence, his life is ruined," Hawkins said. "He won’t work in his field. He won't coach. He won't work in education. He will have to find something else to do for a career."

When asked how Payne received no prison time, Frances Lee Watson, a professor of law at Indiana University's Robert H. McKinney School of Law, said: "What comes to my mind is that (Payne's) lawyer did a great job. (Though), it is not unusual to plead away multiple counts."

Payne's attorney, Dorothy Maryan, told IndyStar that she would not comment on the case.

Police first learned of Payne after an image of possible child pornography was uploaded to a chat room in 2016. The image was eventually traced to Payne’s IP address, court documents said.

In November, IMPD officers executed a search warrant at Payne’s office in the IUPUI Athletics/Military Science Building, the affidavit said.

While there, Spivey searched Payne and his backpack, found and seized two thumb drives, two laptops and other devices, the affidavit said.

Payne was sentenced June 14.

He had been in jail three days before bonding out for $10,000.

When asked how a man with 11 felony counts and nearly 200 images could serve no other time behind bars, Hawkins said he has to differentiate between possession and producing and disseminating.

"With possession, there is a separator between him and the victim," he said. "With the other, the victim is in the room. That's a whole different deal."

Court documents:Hope Hicks in contact with Michael Cohen during hush-money discussions

Alicia Kozakiewicz disagrees.

"There is this fallacy, this belief that viewing images and videos is a victimless crime and that is absolutely not true," she said. Kozakiewicz is the director of outreach and global impact at the International Centre for Missing and Exploited Children, which works to eradicate child abduction, sexual abuse and exploitation.

"Thinking about how many victims that is, that's terrible," she said .

Kozakiewicz said this crime is personal for her. At age 13, she was a victim of a child pornography case that garnered national attention when she was abducted. Over the course of four days, she was held captive, shackled, raped and tortured. The man who kidnapped her filmed the abuse and broadcast it online, live via streaming video for others to watch.

A sentence such as the one Payne was given is likely not going to stop him from being a repeat offender as he basically got off "unscathed," Kozakiewicz said.

"He can go start a new life," she said.

Payne asked the judge to let him complete his probation in Florida, according to court documents. The judge agreed.

"Defendant can transfer probation to Florida upon completion of a sex offender program or if Florida has an equivalent sex offender program," Hawkins wrote in his comments. "Florida must agree to accept the defendant. Defendant is not allowed internet access at home or work."

The same day he was sentenced, Payne registered as a sex offender in Indiana.

After Payne was taken into custody Nov. 8, he was fired from his coaching position at IUPUI. In February, the school hired then-assistant coach Lindsey Buteyn as the new head volleyball coach. She had taken the position on an interim basis after Payne was terminated.

Follow Dana Benbow on Twitter: @DanaBenbow.