CARLISLE TEACHER STEPHEN BURNS SENTENCED FOR POSSESSING OVER 1,000 CHILD PORN IMAGES

In March 2008, Stephen Burns, a 33-year-old school teacher from Carlisle, admitted to downloading more than 1,000 indecent images of children onto his home computer. Burns attempted to justify his actions by claiming that he was seeking images of children who were smiling, suggesting they appeared to be happy and not suffering. He now resides with his parents at Whinnie House Road, Morton West, Carlisle.

Burns was sentenced to a nine-month jail term, suspended for two years. His barrister expressed remorse, stating that Burns was ashamed of himself.

The police arrested Burns at his home on Frederick Street, Luton, last September following a tip-off from his then-partner. A forensic examination of his computer revealed 1,146 indecent images, some of which depicted children as young as four. Among these images, some were classified within the most serious category of child pornography, Luton Crown Court was told. Burns pleaded guilty to 17 counts of possessing indecent images of children.

Although Burns was a teacher at a Bedfordshire school and had received a best teacher award, there were no reports of misconduct or abuse. He explained to authorities that he developed an urge to download child pornography.

Prosecutor William McGivern stated, 'He started searching the internet for porn and soon came across websites with images of children when ordinary porn bored him. He became caught up in it and could not stop, even though he knew he could lose his job and face imprisonment.'

Burns was described as a man of previously good character. His defense solicitor, Susan Meek, said, 'He was viewing the images as if they were a fantasy world and never thought of the children as real. He never acted improperly at school and was well-liked, with a good teaching record.'

Judge Barbara Mensah addressed Burns directly, emphasizing his shame. She stated, 'These are not victimless crimes and involve the exploitation of children who are abused for people like you to indulge in. By downloading the images, you are encouraging the exploitation. The children would not have been smiling as you said—they would have been extremely distressed. You should feel disgusted.'

While the jail sentence was suspended due to his guilty plea and good character, Burns was fined £882, placed under a two-year supervision order, and mandated to participate in a sex offenders’ program. Additionally, he will be on the Sex Offenders’ Register for ten years and subject to a sexual offences prevention order that prohibits him from being alone with a child under 16.