MONROE — Not guilty pleas were entered in Green County Circuit Court Thursday for a 71-year-old Monroe man who faces potentially decades in prison on a single charge of felony sexual exploitation of a child for uploading what police allege was child pornography to a sexually-themed, social-media group.

The charge against Dana P. Reeve, 71, of Monroe, stemmed from local police follow-up on a tip from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC), according to court records. The national service’s tips have led to numerous child-pornography related charges and subsequent arrests traced to users in this area in recent years.

“Dana advised it was a group created for people to learn ‘naughty sex’,” said the complaint against Reeve, detailing the nature of the site.

The identity of the victim in the photo is unknown but investigators allege she is under 18. However, in the complaint the defendant told investigators that he never knowingly allowed a minor into the social media site, which Reeve said he created and had only about 14 actual members. They were known to each other only by their social media screen names, Reeve told police.

“Dana continued to advise the content he uploaded did not contain images of minors,” police said, in the complaint.

But a conversation allegedly taken from the defendants’ social media chat log apparently references possible earlier encounters within the group site; and previous possible victims of child pornography referred to only by their first names.

“I informed him based off of the review of his (social media) content he uploaded a picture which depicted Child Pornography,” said the complaint.

At Thursday’s court appearance an attorney for Reeve, who is in custody on an $8,000 bond, argued that the bond amount is too high for his client. The offense occurred in 2024, according to court records. Reeve was arrested in June.

“Judge, he’s not going to be able to post that,” said the defense attorney, Michael Murphy.

Judge Jane Bucher did, however, agree to modify the defendant’s bond so that he would only have to pay $4,000 cash — with the other $4,000 posted as a signature bond, provided it is signed by Reeve’s wife.

Other bond conditions for Reeve remain, and include a restriction on his use of the internet — limited to streaming movie sites, consultations with his attorneys, and any telehealth visits he may have scheduled. The defendant also cannot leave the state without permission, go to any schools or parks; and have no contact with anyone under 18.

According to online court records, Reeve has no other criminal history in Wisconsin.

The NCMEC, which routinely tips off police, is a national nonprofit that works with law enforcement agencies nationwide to combat child exploitation and abuse, and has sparked numerous area investigations into online child porn activity resulting in arrests and felony charges. The uploading and downloading of suspect child pornography, either images or videos, are flagged by investigators and tracked by a user’s computer IP address — even through apps and web sites users wrongly assume are anonymous or untraceable.

In addition to a 40-year maximum possible prison sentence, the charge against Reeve includes a fine of up to $100,000, court records indicate.

If convicted, Reeve also would face lifetime supervision as a sex offender.