December 2017 Pervert allowed back on the internet after downloading child abuse pics A PERVERT who was banned from the internet and told by a judge to get a “real life” after downloading child abuse images will be allowed back online after winning an appeal. Stuart Morgan, 49, was prosecuted after police found hundreds of indecent pornographic images on computer equipment at his Hereford home in May last year. He was given a three-year community order and, after a judge heard of the way he lived his life, was effectively banned from the web. Judge Daniel Pearce-Higgins QC said Morgan’s life had been dominated by online activity and he could only change if he was kept off the internet He gave him a sexual harm prevention order, which the Court of Appeal in London today said amounted to a “blanket ban” on web use. If he obeyed the order, he would be restricted to sending simple emails from public places or in the presence of police. Morgan, of Roman Road, Holmer, appealed and saw the order overturned by Lord Justice Gross, Mr Justice Teare and Mr Justice Kerr. “The blanket ban was well-intentioned, but it is unrealistic, oppressive and disproportionate,” said Lord Justice Gross. The court heard Morgan admitted that he worked two days a week and spent the rest of his time watching films and pornography. He said he had a lifetime’s collection of pornography, which he had downloaded and stored on hard drives, CDs and DVDs. Although he initially searched for adult pornography, he accidentally viewed indecent images of children. After that, he had searched for, downloaded and stored child porn using peer-to-peer software. He admitted three counts of downloading indecent images, one of possessing extreme porn and one of possessing a prohibited cartoon of a child. “He was assessed as being highly sexually preoccupied,” Lord Justice Gross continued. “His lifestyle was isolated and revolved around his computer. “Judge Pearce-Higgins’ view was that he was unlikely to make much of a recovery until he started living a real life rather than an online life.” The order was quashed and replaced with a new one which allows Morgan to use the internet at home. Under the terms of the order, he must ensure that the internet history on his devices is stored and allow police to inspect it at any time. May 2017 Man banned from private internet use for five years A HEREFORD man who possessed pornographic images of children on his computer has been told by a judge that he cannot access the internet in a private setting for five years. Judge Daniel Pearce-Higgins told Stuart Morgan, 49, that he could only access the internet on public computers in libraries and cafes. His internet ban, the judge added, included using mobile phones. “It’s quite clear that for many years this man’s life has been dominated by online activity,” Judge Pearce-Higgins told Hereford Crown Court last Friday. “He lives alone in a flat and spends a lot of time on the computer and has accessed indecent images. The law is against me doing this but every case is different. If this man is to re-integrate with the real world he can’t be tempted like an alcoholic is tempted by alcohol.” Morgan, of Roman Road, Holmer, pleaded guilty to three counts of making indecent photographs of children, possessing an extreme image of an activity of intercourse with an animal and a prohibited cartoon image of a child. Scott Coughtrie, prosecuting, said police had obtained a warrant to visit Morgan’s property last May when Morgan told police that he had been ‘deleting stuff’ found on the peer-to-peer sharing site, eMule. He told police on interview that he had used the sharing site over a number of years and had ‘accidentally’ downloaded a number of images involving children which had stayed on his hard drive. Defence requested a sexual harm prevention order which would have seen police officers monitor Morgan’s use of the internet. But Judge Pearce-Higgins disagreed with this and imposed a complete private internet ban. Morgan was also ordered to complete a 36 months community order and ordered to sign the sex offenders register for five years.