Summerside man sentenced to 1 year in jail for child pornography charges

A P.E.I. man convicted of making and possessing child pornography, Waylon Molyneaux of Summerside, was sentenced Tuesday in provincial court in Charlottetown to a year in jail.

The court heard that Molyneaux, 32, took photos of a young child on his cellphone, including some that showed the child's genitals, legs and buttocks.

During the trial, a witness testified they found the photos on Molyneaux's phone.

Molyneauxpleaded not guilty and said the photos must have been taken by accident whenhis phone fell out of his pocket.

But Judge John Douglas said he didn't believe that explanation,and ruled the photos were taken for a sexual purpose.

Victim suffering behavioural issues

The victim's motherreported that since the incident, thechild has suffered from ongoing behavioural issues and trauma, resulting in temper tantrums at school that professionalsare unable to manage.

Crown attorneyLisa Gouldenasked the court to consider Molyneaux's denial of guilt and lack of remorse, and requestedhe receive the mandatory minimum sentence of one year in jail.

Molyneaux's lawyerPeter Ghizasked the court to approach the victim impact statementwith scrutiny, sayingthere is no evidence to connectthe child's behavioural issues with the incident and noting thatthe child may not even be aware the photos were taken.

The defence also asked the judge to consider Molyneaux's own difficult childhood, which included years of physical and mental abuse.

2 years probation, sex offender registry

"This isn't your usual case considering the background of Mr. Molyneaux and what he has suffered over the years," Douglas said in handing down his sentence.

"It certainly demonstrated the danger and harm that results from child abuse."

The more important part of the sentence, Douglas added, is what's to follow Molyneaux'sjail term.

After he gets out of jail, Molyneaux will be on probation for two years and his name will be added to the sex offender registry for 20 years.

Douglas said Molyneauxwill have to undergo a sexual deviance assessment, mental health assessments and counsellingto understand the nature of his crime and appropriate boundaries with children.

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