He became a commercial/industrial painting contractor for over 25 years,[1][4][6][7][8] first working with other companies, then founding K&R Christopher in 1986.[2] He was on the board of the Chicago Painting and Decorating Contractors of America (PDCA),[2] was board president for the Finishing Contractors Association of Chicago[6] and was involved in lobbying for the association.[1] He also renovated the Elgin Dairy Company building into luxury condominiums.[2]
Farnham was in the Illinois House from January 2009 to March 2014.[9] The district included portions of Elgin, Carpentersville, East Dundee and South Elgin.[10] His House committee assignments included Aging, Appropriations (Human Services), Consumer Protection, Education Reform, State Government Administration, and Veterans' Affairs starting with the 96th General Assembly;[11] Disability Services, Elementary & Secondary Education (and its Mandate Subcommittee), and Environment & Energy starting with the 97th General Assembly.[12]Heco-sponsored two bills to increase penalties for child pornography.[4]
Farnham ran unopposed in the 2014 Democratic primary, winning on Tuesday, March 18, but resigned the following day, saying that he had been "battling serious health issues for a number of years".[6][14]
On March 19, federal agents also took Farnham's State House chamber laptop. On March 20, the search warrant was made public.[15]
On April 28, 2014, Farnham was charged. After receiving a tip that a Yahoo! e-mail address was being used to trade child pornography, investigators found chat logs from June 2013 to January 2014, in which the user bragged in detail about a sexual encounter with a 6-year-old girl and said that "12 is about as old as i can handle." The account's use was traced back to Farnham's home Comcast Internet service.[7] At least two videos of child pornography were found on Farnham's Elgin legislative office computer.[7] In addition to two videos showing victims as young as 2 or 3, investigators found over 2,750 images of child pornography.[4]
Farnham pleaded guilty on December 5, 2014. Farnham's attorney said that Farnham's details of a 6-year-old girl were fictional and that Farnham "has never, never abused any child, never had any physical contact with a child."[4] The attorney also said that Farnham has a "complex set of medical problems" including bladder cancer and hepatitis C, as well as pulmonary fibrosis for which Farnham was seeking to begin an experimental drug treatment,[13] but "without a lung transplant, it's likely he's going to die in the penitentiary".[4] The court continued Farnham's home confinement, which he had been on since his arrest,[13] with stipulations that he not go on his condominium's patio or use the Internet, until his March 2015 sentencing hearing.[4][needs update]
On March 19, 2015, Farnham was sentenced to eight years in prison. U.S. District Judge Edmond E. Chang also ordered Farnham to pay a $30,000 fine.[16] He surrendered to the Federal Bureau of Prisons on May 19, 2015, to begin serving his sentence.[17][18][19]
In February 2016 Farnham was sued by two minors who claim they appear in child pornography found on his computer.[20]
Keith Farnham died on June 18, 2017, at Butner Federal Correctional Complex in North Carolina. He was 69.[3] Farnham was suffering from bladder cancer, lung disease, and pulmonary fibrosis.[21]
^The 2008 Citizens to Elect Keith Farnham biography says that Farnham was born in Greenville, Maine. The January 2009 Bangor Daily News article says Shirley, Maine.
^The March 24, 2014 and April 28, 2014 Chicago Times articles say Farnham ran a "painting business in Elgin". The December 5, 2014 Chicago Times article says Farnham ran "an Elgin printing business".