NEWTOWNABBEY MAN JOSEPH HERON SENTENCED IN BELFAST FOR CHILD PORNOGRAPHY

In March 2012, Joseph Heron, a 50-year-old resident of Dorchester Crescent, Newtownabbey, was sentenced to 18 months in prison for possessing and downloading indecent images and films of children as young as six.

Heron pleaded guilty to 23 charges relating to over 300 images stored on his computer. The offences spanned a four-year period ending on 28 July 2010. Additionally, he was registered on the Sex Offenders’ Register for a duration of 10 years.

Belfast Recorder Judge Tom Burgess ordered Heron to serve nine months in custody, followed by nine months on supervised parole. The judge explained his relatively lenient sentence was influenced by Heron’s prior service to the community as a fireman, stating, "he was getting the lenient sentence because of his prior service to the community as a fireman in which he had risked his life."

While acknowledging Heron’s genuine remorse, Judge Burgess dismissed his claims that he had not actively sought out such material on his computer, criticizing this as unconvincing. The judge emphasized that downloading these images fueled the ongoing market for such content, further harming the victims depicted. He noted, "downloading the images perpetuated the market for such material, adding to the suffering and continued emotional damage of the children."

The judge also highlighted that although the children in the images may be far from this jurisdiction, their rights remain equally important. Reflecting on the impact of Heron’s actions, Judge Burgess said, "Heron had already paid a heavy price because of his offending, but that was less than the scars left on the children, who, unlike him, will have no opportunity of leading a full and happy life."

During the hearing, defense QC Paul Ramsey argued that Heron’s personal and professional life had been severely affected, stating, "Heron was effectively ruined in his family and professional life, and the consequences for the disgraced fireman are great." Ramsey added that Heron’s wife was supportive, but they would likely have to move home, and Heron would lose his job, making his future appear very bleak.

The legal representative also noted that most of the images—about 75%—were classified as low end of category one, although he conceded that 10% fell into the higher category four.

Prosecution lawyer Tessa Kitson explained that Heron initially claimed to have been conducting innocent work on his computer and that the images had appeared without his active search. She detailed that the total of 316 images—featuring children rather than teenagers, with the first downloaded in June 2006—consisted mostly of photographs (306), with the remaining being video clips. Importantly, there was no evidence suggesting Heron had distributed or shared the material with others.