DAVID PEARSON FROM MANSFIELD SENTENCED FOR CHILD PORNOGRAPHY AND ABUSE CASES

In June 2009, a man named David Pearson from Mansfield was sentenced to six years in prison after being found guilty of possessing child pornography and abusing two young girls. The court proceedings revealed disturbing details about Pearson's criminal activities, which included the possession of five short films depicting child abuse, with one film showing a child as young as three years old being subjected to abuse.

These films were classified as level four on the severity scale, with level five being the most serious category. The police investigation uncovered that Pearson had not only stored these indecent materials on his devices but also copied them onto a CD and a desktop computer, indicating a deliberate effort to possess and possibly distribute such content.

Further investigations revealed that Pearson had engaged in sexual misconduct with minors. It was established that he had coerced a 14-year-old girl into performing a sexual act on him repeatedly and had taken indecent photographs of her. Additionally, he was found to have indecently touched a 15-year-old girl, actions that compounded the severity of his crimes.

Pearson, aged 35 and residing on Wilson Street in Mansfield, pleaded guilty to multiple charges, including three counts of indecency with a child, four counts of indecent assault committed between December 2001 and December 2002, three counts of taking indecent photographs, and possession of indecent images. The police had seized computer equipment from his home on March 13, 2008, which contained the illicit material.

During the sentencing hearing at Nottingham Crown Court, Judge Michael Stokes, QC, emphasized the gravity of Pearson's offenses. He disqualified Pearson from working with children for life and ordered him to register as a sex offender upon his release from prison. The judge remarked, "You don't need me to tell you that these are very serious offences. You have to be dealt with for offences where you were in possession of quite disgusting moving pictures, involving in some of the cases very young children. The damage that such offending does to adolescent girls is considerable, and we will never know how much damage has been caused, in particular, to the 14-year-old."

In mitigation, Guy Napthine, representing Pearson, stated that his client had recently sought psychiatric help for his crimes. Napthine added, "It is expected the psychiatrist recommends he goes to a specialist prison where sex offenders are dealt with. He is preparing to accept any assistance by way of courses within the prison to address what he has done."

Overall, the court's decision reflects the serious nature of Pearson's offenses and the ongoing concern about protecting minors from such predatory behavior.