A pensioner with "a long-standing entrenched sexual interest in children" dating back over 40 years has been sentenced to two years in prison for possession of child pornography.
Maurice Doran (67), who had 5,283 child pornographic images, spent most of his working life in Irish Distilleries before becoming a driver for Cheeverstown centre for children with disabilities.
Doran, formerly of Rossmore Lawn, Templeogue, Dublin, pleaded guilty at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court to possessing the child pornographic images at his home on May 26th, 2001, and again on December 15th, 2004.
The images showed both male and female children, though predominantly male, aged between 12 months and 15 years old, naked and engaging in various sexual acts with both children and adults.
Doran told gardaí that he was not hurting the children but added: "I am looking at what other people have done and I know this is wrong."
Judge Katherine Delahunt, who previously viewed a sample of the images and has placed him on the sex offenders register, said that Doran did not appear to understand the effect his offences had until he was charged when the second collection of pornography was found in December 2004.
She accepted that Doran had now undergone 1,000 hours of therapy at the Granada Institute - which contributes to the safety, protection and well-being of children and adolescents. He now had a deeper understanding of the effect of his offences and had been assessed as being at a significantly lower level of reoffending.
The institute report noted that Doran admitted he had a "long established and embedded interest" in child pornography since 1961.
He had since faced up to his own sexual orientation but would still be described as a "socially isolated and emotionally lonely man" without any "identifiable close friends".
The report concluded that it was necessary for Doran to continue with psychotherapy in order for him to reach the lowest level risk of reoffending.
The judge noted that since 2004 his "entire family structure has disintegrated" and he was living alone while attempting to reintegrate into society.
Judge Delahunt added that although she was satisfied Doran had not abused children and had not produced or distributed any of the material, some of the images could be described as being in the most severe category.
She suspended the last year of the sentence for two years on the understanding that he continued to liaise with the probation service upon his release from prison.
Det Sgt James Madden told Una Ní Raifeartaigh, prosecuting, that Doran was on bail awaiting sentence for possession of 2,033 of these images when his wife, along with her two adult children, searched their home and discovered another CD-rom containing further images.
She contacted gardaí and a subsequent search on December 15th, 2004, revealed a further 3,250 images.
Doran accepted full responsibility for images found on a laptop and 235 floppy disks and admitted he was aware that it was an offence since 1988 to view child pornography.
He no longer lives at his home because when he returned there in December 2004 to find that the images had been discovered, his family packed a suitcase for him.
Luan Ó Braonáin, defending, submitted that Doran's life had now completely changed. His relationship with his family had been destroyed but it was accepted that this was his own fault.