DEAN AARON GEE FROM SCARBOROUGH ESCAPES JAIL IN COURT OF APPEAL OVER CHILD IMAGE POSSESSION

In a notable legal development, Dean Aaron Gee, a 29-year-old resident of Scarborough, has had his prison sentence overturned by the Court of Appeal amid concerns about his safety if incarcerated. Gee was originally sentenced to ten months in prison on May 11, 2011, after admitting to possessing indecent images of children. However, the appellate court replaced his custodial term with a three-year community order, citing the unique circumstances of his case.

During the hearing at the Court of Appeal in London, judges referenced a psychiatric report which suggested that Gee might be vulnerable to abuse if placed in prison, specifically noting that he could become an “inmate’s bitch.” The panel, consisting of Lord Justice Rix, Mr Justice Stadlen, and Mr Justice Hickinbottom, acknowledged the “exceptional mitigation” present in Gee’s situation, leading them to quash the original jail sentence.

Instead of imprisonment, Gee is now mandated to participate in a sex offenders treatment programme, a measure aimed at addressing his underlying issues. The court was informed that Gee had led an otherwise exemplary life, establishing a charity to assist young people, motivated by his own experiences of a profoundly dysfunctional childhood.

His possession of child sex images came to light after a thief broke into his car in Manchester last year, stealing his laptop. Following this incident, Gee was prosecuted at Manchester Crown Court, where he pleaded guilty to 17 counts of possessing indecent photographs of children. The images he possessed were described by the court as “utterly abhorrent.”

Gee’s legal representatives argued that his viewing of such material was rooted in trauma from his own childhood persecution and emphasized that he did not pose a future risk to children. Mr Justice Stadlen acknowledged the severity of the material but highlighted Gee’s charitable work and the difficult start in life he had endured. The judge noted that these factors made his case “exceptional.”

Furthermore, the court considered the potential harm that prison could inflict on Gee, suggesting that incarceration might be “devastating” and could even lead to suicidal thoughts if he were subjected to sexual abuse while inside. The judge concluded that this was a “very rare and exceptional case,” where the public interest did not necessarily require a custodial sentence, leading to the decision to avoid imprisonment in favor of community-based rehabilitation.