My Husband Was Jailed For Downloading Child Porn
25 January 2018, 14:48
After a new report said that prosecuting "low-risk paedophiles" is counter-productive, Shelagh asked whether we need a new approach to dealing with perpetrators?
The Independent Inquiry into Child Sex Abuse has heard from Simon Bailey, a high profile police officer who deals with the safeguarding of children, who said that prosecuting low-risk paedophiles was "counter-productive" because they clog up a court system which is failing to support rape and sexual assault victims as it is.
Shelagh asked whether we needed a fresh approach to dealing with paedophiles and heard from Sophie from Oxford who's husband is currently serving a prison sentence for uploading and downloading indecent images of children.
Sophie told LBC how in April 2017 there was knock at the door at 7am and her husband was arrested. Sophie said the news came as a "complete and utter shock to me and my children."
A month later her husband was sentenced to thirteen months for uploading and downloading indecent images of children.
Shelagh asked how it has affected Sophie who said that her "whole world fell apart."
Speaking about her husband Sophie said he was the "most lovely, gentle, kind man you could ever wish to meet." Sophie said that her husband told her he had "felt like this since puberty but couldn't tell anybody."
Her husband was downloading categories A, B and C "the worst you could ever imagine."
Speaking of her husband's experience of prison, Sophie said that he was currently doing a horticulture course in prison because that's what has been offered but she doubted that it would help him. She said "there is no help for him in there" to deal with his issues, and Sophie worried that when he gets out "he will be exactly the same person... with the same interest."
Sophie is currently getting divorced from her husband saying: "I've moved on, there is no future for us. How could there be?"
A clearly upset Sophie said that the situation had "absolutely devastated us, but we are rebuilding our lives."
She spoke of the difficulties her children who "worshipped this man" had experienced whilst dealing with the situation. She said her two younger children haven't seen him since "the day he left the house" because he wasn't allowed to see them for their own protection.
Sophie finished by saying that as far a the police could understand, despite admitting to having a fascination since his teens he only acted on it "two years ago" and she expressed regret that her husband had not been able to get help during that time.
