27-year-old accused pled guilty to possession of child pornography under s 163.1(4) CC. Accused accumulated over 200 videos and 10,000 photos constituting child pornography on his computer over an 8-year period. Majority of images were of very young children and depicted sexual assaults, with one video showing bestiality. Accused was remorseful and sought counselling of his own initiative after arrest.
Held: 18 months’ imprisonment followed by 3 years probation.
Court relied on Kwok, 2007 CanLII 2942 (ON SC) regarding aggravating and mitigating factors in child pornography cases. Aggravating factors here included the very young age of the children, “extremely harmful” nature of the images, large size of the collection and fact that it was accumulated over a number of years, and that it was available to others through peer-to-peer file sharing. The accused’s guilty plea, evident remorse and changes in his life, lack of record, and fact that he lost his job as a result were considered mitigating. However, deterrence and denunciation are primary objectives, with rehabilitation secondary.
M. Khan – Defence Counsel