FORT WORTH, Texas -- The former chairman of internal medicine at John Peter Smith Hospital in Fort Worth -- according to the hospital's Web site -- pleaded guilty on Thursday to a charge of one count of possession of child pornography.

Dr. James Shin, 46, of Southlake, also known as Young Jin Shin and James Young-Jin Shin, faces up to 10 years in prison, a $250,000 fine and a lifetime of supervised release. He will also be required to register as a sex offender.

Sentencing is set for Oct. 2, 2008.

Documents filed in court state that Shin admitted that in September 2007 he used the Internet to download and possess images and videos of minor children engaged in sexually explicit conduct.

After receiving an investigative lead, an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) special agent visited the Shin residence in Southlake on Sept. 13, 2007, and Dr. Shin agreed to allow the agents to search his computer.

A forensic exam of the computer revealed numerous images and videos of child pornography, which included visual depictions of minors engaged in sexually explicit conduct.

Shin admitted he knowingly possessed and acquired the images and videos of child pornography on his computer from public newsgroups on the Internet and that he did view child pornography.

Some of the images of child pornography contained images of real children that have been identified through other law enforcement investigations throughout the nation.

JPS spokeswoman Jamie Brown says Shin formerly led the internal medicine department, but is no longer employed by the hospital. She declined further comment.

His attorney, Bob Webster, told The Dallas Morning News that Shin resigned from JPS in May.