Child porn man Aston Dalzell Piper evades prison

A MAN convicted of possessing more than 2,000 child pornorgraphy images has escaped imprisonment.
Aston Dalzell Piper, of Station Road, Kintbury, downloaded pictures and videos of young boys, some of which were at the most extreme level of depravity

At the original hearing on October 23 the court clerk advised Newbury magistrates that the maximum sentence they could pass would be 12 months? imprisonment.

Magistrate Timothy Goss told Aston Dalzell Piper: "These offences are so serious we consider you should receive greater punishment than we can impose in this court. We therefore commit you to the Crown court for sentence."

But at Reading Crown Court on Monday, His Honour Judge Gordon Risius CB imposed a community sentence on Aston Dalzell Piper.

The original court case caused controversy after prominent members of Dalzell Piper?s community leaped to defend him after his conviction.

In an extraordinary twist after the hearing, some prominent villagers voiced public support for the church bellringer and cpillar of the community."

One even branded the law ca bit of an ass" for its treatment of the 65-year-old.
Meanwhile the vicar of St Mary?s Church, Kintbury, the Reverend Julie Ramsbottom, took the unusual step of issuing a joint statement with Bishop Stephen Cottrell which said: "Aston has kept us informed of the present court case against him.

"We have, hence, laid careful plans both to care for him and for our other parishioners, who will be concerned and dismayed by this news."

At the initial hearing, prosecutor Becky Owens said that, during a police search of Dalzell Piper?s home, detectives seized two computers together containing 2,642 indecent images of children.

A minority of the images were categorised as Level Five - the most extreme form of child pornography - and the bulk of the images depicted children aged between eight and 12, said Ms Owens.

However, she added: "Some were older and some were even younger."

Mr Dalzell Piper admitted seven charges of making indecent photographs of children between July 14 2004 and December 1 last year.

Mike Davis, defending, said: "He is previously of good character and can produce a large number of references that, perhaps, go beyond that.

"The bulk of the images by far were of Level One (the least serious)."
Afterwards the initial hearing Adam Rae-Smith, treasurer of the Friends of St Mary?s Church and member of the Kintbury Parish Plan Steering Group, said: "I am fully supportive of him and believe that, in this case, the law is a bit of an ass. He was just surfing freely available images but he has been foolish and naive.

"I don?t regard him as any risk - people trust their children with him. He is a valuable member of the village and church community who does many good works."
Villager Monica Moore said: "He knows he has been an absolute idiot but he has a lot of support in Kintbury.

"He is a pillar of the community and is well known and liked for the tremendous amount of voluntary work he does."

But the chief executive of the Child Exploitation and Online Protection Centre, Jim Gamble, said: "These images do not do not come out of thin air. In every image is a child who has been subjected to abuse.

"The impact on children can be life destroying, most right-thinking members of society would agree."
Mr Dalzell Piper was given a three-year community order with supervision and treatment and ordered to pay £270 costs.

The computer and images were ordered to be destroyed.

Newbury Today