Daniels appeals from the sentence he received after pleading guilty to possessing child pornography in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 2252A(a)(5)(B). He challenges the length and several conditions of his lifetime term of supervised release. We affirm in part, and vacate and remand in part.
I
In August 2004, special agents of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) were investigating the distribution of child pornography over the internet through online chat groups. After identifying a group whose members traded child pornography over the internet, the FBI traced the online identity of one group member to Daniels in Upland, California. In September 2004, the FBI executed a federal search warrant for Daniels’ Upland residence. Daniels made two statements to the FBI in which he admitted that he was a member of the subject group, that he participated in the group in a female persona, that on several occasions he had downloaded child pornography from the internet and uploaded child pornography to the internet, and that he had child pornography saved on his computer hard drive and on computer diskettes in his home.
FBI agents seized a computer, 223 diskettes, three compact discs, three videotapes, and eleven file folders of documents belonging to Daniels. A search of these media revealed thousands of images and videos of child pornography, and examiners at the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children determined that these thousands of images included 659 images depicting identified victims of child sexual abuse.
In exchange for Daniels’ agreement to plead guilty to a single-count information alleging possession of child pornography and to waive certain appellate rights, the government agreed not to prosecute Daniels for violations of 18 U.S.C. § 2252A(a)(l)-(4) or (6) which would have charged him with receipt, distribution, reproduction, advertisement, promotion, solicitation, or sale of child pornography, or possession with intent to sell child pornography. The plea agreement stated that the maximum sentence included ten years of imprisonment and a lifetime period of supervised release. As part of the plea agreement, Daniels consented to several conditions of supervised release related to the use of computers and the internet. The district court accepted the plea agreement.
The Probation Office filed its Presen-tence Report (PSR) on Daniels and recommended a lifetime term of supervised release, observed that the lifetime term was warranted by applicable statutory provisions, and recommended incarceration within the sentencing guidelines. The PSR reasoned that Daniels’ interest in child pornography over a number of years, his desire to protect his illegal pornographic images, and “an unknown clinical *921 risk assessment of his behavior” all supported the imposition of the lifetime term. The government’s sentencing memorandum agreed with the Probation Office’s recommendations and with the justification for the recommendations.
Daniels objected to the lifetime term and certain special conditions of supervised release, arguing that they were unreasonable and that they did not comport with the governing statutory requirements. In response, the Probation Office reiterated that a lifetime term of supervised release was necessary:
Because the defendant has carefully controlled the type of information provided to the Court as to his psychological condition and orientation, a lifetime term of supervised [release] is necessary for protection of the community, as a truly independent risk assessment has not been conducted. Perhaps even more compelling is that such a term is needed to meet the goal of ensuring adequate rehabilitative treatment. The issues underlying sex offenses are typically deeply ingrained and require life long management. Should the defendant be able to demonstrate to the Court during the term of supervised release that all the underlying clinical truths as to his condition have been identified and ameliorated, the defendant can apply for an early termination of his supervised release.
Most of the argument at the sentencing hearing related to the term of imprisonment. The lifetime term of supervised release and special conditions of release were not brought up by either party. The district court ultimately imposed a 51-month sentence of imprisonment, below the low-end of the advisory Guidelines range. Although Daniels’ opening brief challenged his term of imprisonment as unreasonable, he withdrew that argument in his reply brief. The district, court also imposed a lifetime term of supervised release with several special conditions, including those to which Daniels had consented in the plea agreement and others for which he had not waived appellate rights. Daniels timely appealed, challenging the length of his term of supervised release as well as several of its special conditions.
II
We first address Daniels’ challenges to the district court’s imposition of a lifetime term of supervised release. The length of Daniels’ term of supervised release is part of his sentence and is reviewed for reasonableness.
See United States v. Cope,
Daniels argues that the lifetime term must be reversed because the district court failed to explain its reasons for its imposition in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 3553(c), which provides that “[t]he court, at the time of sentencing, shall state in open court the reasons for its imposition of the particular sentence.” Failure to explain adequately the sentence selected can be procedural error.
See Carty, 520
F.3d at 993. The Supreme Court has explained that section 3553(c) requires a sentencing court to “set forth enough to satisfy the appellate court that [it] has considered the parties’ arguments and has a reasoned basis for exercising [its] own legal decision-making authority.”
Rita v. United States,
- U.S. -,
It is true, as Daniels argues, that the sentencing court did not expressly state its reasons for imposing the lifetime term of supervised release during the sentencing hearing. The sentencing hearing simply did not focus on the term of supervised release and focused instead on the term of imprisonment. Neither party brought it up, although Daniels was given ample opportunity to do so when both he and his counsel were asked if they had anything to add to the discussion. Despite the district court’s silence on the specific issue of the term of supervised release, however, we are satisfied that the record shows that the court considered the arguments and evidence that Daniels had submitted and chose to reject those arguments and impose the Guidelines-recommended lifetime term of supervised release.
The PSR and the government’s sentencing memorandum both discussed the reasons for recommending a lifetime term of supervised release, and Daniels challenged that recommendation in his own sentencing memorandum. At the opening of the sentencing hearing, the judge stated,
The court has also received [the PSR], as well as the recommendations of the probation officer and the pre-sentence investigation report. I’ve received the government’s initial position, the defendant’s position regarding sentencing factors, and then the government’s response to the defendant’s sentencing memorandum on the defendant’s position. I’ve read all of the exhibits; the report from the treating therapists and doctors; the letters, Mr. Daniels’ letters; and the various other information that you submitted concerning sentencing issues and placement issues.
From this record, it is clear that the sentencing court was aware of Daniels’ objection to the recommended term of supervised release and had considered Daniels’ arguments and evidence before making its decision.
See Carty,
Daniels also argues that the lifetime term of supervised release is substantively unreasonable because it improperly restricts Daniels’ First Amendment rights and because it involves a greater deprivation of liberty than is necessary to meet the goals of supervised release. Substantive reasonableness is reviewed “in light of
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all the 18 U.S.C. § 3553(a) [sentencing] factors, including the applicable Guidelines range.”
United States v. Cantrell,
18 U.S.C. § 3583(k) authorizes a term of supervised release of “not less than 5 [years], or life” for offenses involving a minor victim, including possession of child pornography in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 2252A. The Sentencing Guidelines also provide that “the length of the term of supervised release shall not be less than the minimum term of years specified for the offense ... and may be up to life, if the offense is a sex offense.” U.S.S.G. § 5D1.2(b)(2). An accompanying policy statement recommends the maximum term of supervised release for a sex offense. See id. Application Note 1 to section 5D1.2 defines possession of child pornography as a sex offense.
The Probation Office recommended a lifetime term of supervised release in part based on this policy statement, which reflects the judgment of Congress and the Sentencing Commission that a lifetime term of supervised release is appropriate for sex offenders in order to protect the public.
See
H.R. Rep. 107-807,
Daniels does not question that the lifetime term is reasonably related to his offense of conviction or to his background, but argues that because he “had never posed a threat to anyone,” the deprivation of liberty involved is greater than necessary to protect the public and prevent recidivism. Although, unlike the defendant in
Cope,
Daniels has no prior sex offense convictions, the district court was not obligated to accept his assertion that he “never posed a threat to anyone,” or to rely on a report he submitted that the Probation Office found was “based almost exclusively on [Daniels’] self-interested self-reporting.”
See United States v. Rearden,
*924 Additionally, as the district court reminded Daniels at sentencing, merely possessing child pornography is not a victimless crime; it fuels the demand for the creation and distribution of child pornography. The government presented evidence of the harm that children suffer when they are used in the creation of child pornography and when that pornography is distributed to others. A lifetime term of supervised release was warranted in order to ensure that Daniels does not relapse into his addictive behavior and again begin collecting child pornography. The district court was within its discretion to conclude that a lifetime term of supervised release was necessary to punish Daniels for his crime, to rehabilitate him, and to protect the public from future crimes by Daniels.
Daniels’ constitutional argument focuses on the fact that several conditions of supervised release restrict his access to computers and the internet which, if imposed for an entire lifetime, he argues, improperly restrict his First Amendment rights. However, as he admits, Daniels agreed to those conditions in his plea agreement. Contrary to Daniels’ assertion, the plea agreement expressly informed him that the district court could impose a sentence up to a lifetime of supervised release. At his change of plea hearing, Daniels was again reminded that he could receive a lifetime term of supervised release, and he stated that he understood the maximum penalties to which he was subject. As Daniels expressly agreed to the conditions knowing that a lifetime term of supervised release might be imposed, he has waived his right to challenge them. His First Amendment argument is therefore meritless.
Ill
Daniels next challenges a number of the conditions of supervised release imposed by the district court. We review the district court’s decision to impose conditions of supervised release for an abuse of discretion.
United States v. Weber,
A.
Condition six of Daniels’ supervised release states that he “shall participate in a psychological/psychiatric counseling and/or a sex offender treatment program, which may include inpatient treatment as approved and directed by the treatment provider. [Daniels] shall abide by all rules, *925 requirements, and conditions of such program, including submission to risk assessment evaluation(s) and physiological testing, and shall take all medication deemed by the treatment provider to be necessary for rehabilitative purposes.” Daniels raises several objections to this condition.
First, he points out that although the written judgment requires Daniels to submit to
physiological
testing, the transcript of the sentencing hearing states only that he must submit to
psychological
testing. The difference between physiological and psychological testing is significant because physiological testing contemplates Abel and polygraph testing, which are not otherwise specified in Daniels’ conditions of supervised release.
Compare United States v. Stoterau,
Here, the source of the discrepancy between the written judgment and the transcript of oral proceedings is unclear. Daniels asserts that the court actually stated “psychological testing” during the hearing and that the condition must therefore be revised to conform with the oral pronouncement, but the government contends that discrepancy is a result of a mistran-scription by the court reporter. The government’s position seems plausible, given that the district court appears to have been reading the special terms of supervised release directly from the Probation Officer’s letter recommending physiological testing. Because we cannot determine with certainty the condition that was actually imposed at the sentencing hearing and because the difference is significant insofar as physiological testing contemplates Abel and polygraph testing whereas psychological testing may not, we vacate this condition and remand it to the district court. The district court can make any change necessary so that the written judgment is in conformity with the oral judgment, if the court remembers what that judgment was. If not, the court may hold a new hearing on that condition.
Second, Daniels argues that because the condition requiring him to submit to physiological testing contemplates Abel and polygraph testing, it is invalid because the district court did not apply heightened scrutiny before imposing the condition and because the condition involves a greater deprivation of liberty than is reasonably necessary for the purposes of supervised release. Daniels also asserts that polygraph testing violates his Sixth Amendment rights, but he fails to assert this position with any meaningful argument, so this objection to the condition is waived.
See
Fed. R.App. P. 28(a)(9);
Ghahremani v. Gonzales,
These arguments are not new to us. In
Stoterau,
we held that polygraph testing as a condition of supervised release does not infringe on a defendant’s Fifth Amendment rights because defendants retain such rights during polygraph examinations.
We have similarly held against the challenges Daniels raises to Abel testing: “Abel testing does not implicate a particularly significant liberty interest, and thus does not require the district court to make the heightened findings” Daniels requests. Id. at 1006. We also disagreed that Abel testing is unreliable, holding that a “district court could reasonably conclude that the Abel test has value in rehabilitation and protection of the public as part of a treatment program for assessing a sex offender’s interest in children.” Id. at 1007. Therefore, here, as in Stoterau, we hold that the district court did not abuse its discretion in imposing a condition of supervised release that may require Daniels to submit to Abel and polygraph testing.
Third, and finally, Daniels objects to the supervised release condition that he “take all prescribed medication.” In
Cope,
which was decided after Daniels was sentenced, we held that certain medications such as anti-psychotic medications implicate significant liberty interests and that to impose a condition requiring a defendant to take those types of medications, a district court must make “ ‘on-the-record, medically-grounded findings that court-ordered medication is necessary to accomplish one or more of the factors listed in § 3583(d)(1).’”
In sum, although we reject Daniels’ challenges to Condition six insofar as he objects its potential to submit him to Abel and polygraph testing, we order a limited remand of this condition so that the district court can either conform the written judgment to the oral pronouncement or hold a new hearing to decide whether “psychological” or “physiological” testing will be imposed. We also remand so that an appropriate record can be developed for the phrase mandating that Daniels take all prescribed medication. If no such record is developed, the condition will be construed to be limited to medications that do not implicate Daniels’ significant liberty interests.
B.
Condition seven provides that, “As directed by the Probation Officer, the defendant shall pay all or part of the costs of the defendant’s sex offender treatment or psychiatric disorder.... ” Daniels argues it is improper for a district court to delegate to the Probation Officer such a responsibility; however, he recognizes that this argument, which he failed to raise in the dis
*927
trict court, is foreclosed by
United States v. Dupas,
C.
Condition eight prohibits Daniels from “possessing] any materials, including pictures, photographs, books, writings, drawings, videos, or video games, depicting and/or describing ‘sexually explicit conduct’ as defined in 18 U.S.C. § 2256(2).” Daniels objects to this condition, arguing that it involves a greater deprivation of liberty than is reasonably necessary, because Daniels was convicted only of simple possession of child pornography, and that it violates the First Amendment because the condition would apply to legal adult pornography and even perhaps non-pornographic media with sexual content. Daniels did not object to this condition in the district court, and so we review for plain error.
See United States v. Ortiz,
We approved a substantially similar condition in
Rearden,
where we held that the district court did not plainly err in imposing the condition that the defendant “not possess any materials depicting sexually explicit conduct as defined in 18 U.S.C. § 2256(2).”
Daniels acknowledges that we upheld a similar condition in
Rearden,
but argues that his case is distinguishable from
Rear-den
because there the defendant was involved with a co-defendant who was “a dangerous pedophile” and had an “interest in extremely vile and graphic depictions of child rape and murder.”
Rearden,
D.
Condition ten prohibits Daniels from “frequent[ing], or loiter[ing], within 100 feet of school yards, parks, public swimming pools, playgrounds, youth centers, video arcade facilities, or other places primarily used by persons under the age of 18.” Condition fourteen restricts his choice of housing, stating that Daniels “shall not reside within direct view of’ such places. Daniels argues that because the government has submitted “absolutely no evidence that Daniels has ever been any danger to a minor,” these conditions are not reasonably related to his offense of conviction or his personal background.
Daniels did not object to this condition in the district court, so we review for plain error.
See Ortiz,
E.
Conditions eleven and twelve provide that, without prior approval of the Probation Office, Daniels shall not be employed by a business or organization “that causes him to regularly contact persons under the age of 18,” or “whose principal product is the production and/or selling of materials depicting and/or describing ‘sexually explicit conduct,’ as defined at 18 U.S.C. § 2256(2).” Daniels, for the first time on appeal, challenges these restrictions as “improper occupational restrictions.”
*929
We approved almost identically-worded conditions in
Stoterau.
F.
Finally, Daniels objects to the court’s authorization for the Probation Officer to disclose the PSR and any previous mental evaluations or reports to the treatment provider, and for the treatment provider to provide information to state or local service agencies for rehabilitative purposes. Daniels contends this authorization violates the psychotherapist-patient privilege recognized in
Jaffee v. Redmond,
IV
For the above reasons, we AFFIRM the district court’s sentence of a lifetime term of supervised release. We AFFIRM the special conditions of release, with the exception of condition six. We VACATE and REMAND condition six to the district court for a determination of whether the condition requires Daniels to submit to psychological or physiological testing, and to make specific findings concerning the medications that Daniels may be required to take.
AFFIRMED IN PART; VACATED AND REMANDED IN PART.
