Ex-teacher gets 12 months in jail for child pornography
Police found nearly 700 images on seized devices
A former teacher’s collection of child pornography, which included anime-style images of a teacher having sex with children, was described by a judge as “searing and horrifying.”
In Ontario Court of Justice in St. Catharines on Tuesday, Geoffrey Burnet was sentenced to 12 months behind bars on a charge of possession of child pornography.
Judge Fergus ODonnell said the charge the disgraced educator pleaded guilty to is one of the most “repugnant and harmful” offences in the Canadian Criminal Code.
“The development, nourishing and protection of children is easily one of society’s greatest obligations,” he said.
“Any involvement in child pornography is the antithesis of that.
“A hyperbolic characterization of child pornography and its effects would be inconceivable, unforgivable, vile, odious and repugnant … they are but a few apt adjectives for this manifestation of one of humankind’s worst descent into darkness.”
Burnet, a resident of Kitchener, came to the attention of Niagara Regional Police in 2016, along with eight other people, after a seven-year-old girl was made available for sexual services online.
Through a multi-jurisdiction investigation, police determined a number of images of child pornography had been shared between the defendant and a St. Catharines man.
Police seized from Burnet a cellphone, thumb drive and a laptop.
The devices contained almost 700 images of child pornography.
His collection included images of bestiality, bondage and anime-style drawings depicting a teacher having sex with children.
At the time of his arrest, Burnet was employed at Hamilton’s Columbia International College. He taught students in Grades 7 and 8 at the private school.
He had previously worked as a supply teacher at a number of schools in Hamilton, Guelph and Toronto.
“I want to be a good man and be productive member of society again,” Burnet told the judge.
In 2019, the defendant was convicted of committing an indecent act and sentenced to six months in jail.
That charge involved the defendant exposing his genitals to two female students.
The Ontario College of Teachers revoked his registration and his teaching certificate in May 2021.
“Sexual abuse of students and possession of child pornography are serious breaches of the ethical and professional standards of the profession,” a decision by the agency’s disciplinary committee said.
In addition to custody, Burnet was placed on probation for three years and his name will appear on the national sex offender registry for 10 years.
He cannot work or volunteer anywhere he would be in a position of trust or authority over children under 16. He is also banned from using the internet to access the social media sites of anyone under 18 for the next 20 years.