Porn sentence 1 day

UPDATE 2:20 P.M.

Ryan Hampton will be released from custody on Saturday after serving seven months in prison, despite being found guilty on eight of the nine counts against him.

The judge presiding in Friday's case in Kelowna found Hampton guilty of possessing child pornography and six counts of breach of undertaking for contacting his ex-wife.

He was acquitted on a charge of obstructing justice.

The child pornography charge carries with it a mandatory minimum six-month sentence.

Crown counsel urged the judge to give Hampton a longer sentence due to the fact he was an RCMP officer at the time of the offences and in a position of public trust.

Hampton’s defence said Hampton has already faced a difficult time in prison, due to the nature of his charges and because he was a police officer.

“He’s been in virtual solitary confinement for his entire time in prison, locked in his cell for at least 23 hours a day, and it’s been extremely excruciating for him,” said defence attorney Jason Tarnow.

The judge took this into account during sentencing, giving Hampton 10.5 months credit for the seven months he has served, and only sentencing him to an additional day to prepare for his release.

He was also given two years probation.

The final day of the trial included graphic descriptions of the images and videos that were on Hampton’s USB drive.

Hampton and his then-wife Valerie Little were going through a rough breakup at the time, and Hampton had argued Little had put the content on the USB drive to help her in their divorce.

Several RCMP officers testified Hampton had discussed Little having the drive with incriminating evidence on it, but said he was only looking for images of young girls, not underage ones.

When asked why he hadn’t deleted the files when he saw they were in fact underage girls, Hampton said he didn’t know.

Police forensics determined the content included girls as young as two years old.

A contentious point in the trial revolved around when Little found the USB drive. Police forensics determined illegal content had been uploaded onto the drive on April 4 and 5, dates Little initially said she might have had possession of it.

Little first viewed the files on April 7, but said she found it a few days prior. She couldn't remember when exactly she found it. The defence said that showed she was the one who put the content on it.

While the judge said inconsistencies in Little’s testimony gave him reason to be cautious, it wasn't enough to acquit Hampton.

The judge said while sentencing must denounce such behaviour, it doesn't mean Hampton should be made an example of.

Hampton must travel to Alberta after he is released to face drunk driving charges.

After the trial, Tarnow said Hampton still maintains his innocence.

“He will maintain his innocence until the day he dies,” said Tarnow. “He did not access this stuff, he did not possess this stuff.”

Tarnow said Hampton will probably appeal the decision.

 

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UPDATE 12:50 P.M.

Former Vernon RCMP officer Ryan Hampton will serve just one more day in jail after being found guilty of eight counts including possessing and accessing child pornography.

The judge sentenced Hampton to time served plus one day.

Hampton has already served seven months in jail while awaiting trial. He was given 1.5 times credit for those seven months.

Crown had been asking for a one-year sentence with no extra credit for time served.

Along with the sentence, Hampton was also placed on two years probation.

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ORIGINAL

A former Vernon RCMP officer has been found guilty of possessing and accessing child pornography.

Ryan Hampton was on trial in a Kelowna courtroom, facing nine separate charges.

He was found guilty on eight of those, including two counts of possessing and accessing child pornography and six counts of breach of undertaking for contacting his ex-wife when ordered not to.

He was found not guilty on the ninth count, obstruction of justice.

Hampton's defence lawyer had contended his client's ex-wife, Valerie Little (a fellow officer), had framed him during their marriage breakup.

Crown lawyer Claire Ducluzea countered by saying not once during the initial investigation did Hampton intimate he had been framed.

She argued he admitted to both downloading the illegal content by accident and to knowing it was on the electronic items before the judge.