Ex-CYF caregiver jailed for abuse

A former Child, Youth and Family caregiver who abused his 10-year-old charge and took indecent photos of her and two siblings has been given a prison sentence totalling five years and three months.

Stephen Thomas Clode was sentenced at the Pukekohe District Court yesterday on six charges of indecent assault and one charge each of possessing, making and distributing objectionable material.

Three assault charges relate to the 10-year-old girl who was in his care and the other three to his Korean homestay, whose case led police to uncover more than 16,000 images of child pornography on his computer.

Crown prosecutor Richard Marchant had sought a total prison sentence of six years as a starting point.

Throughout sentencing, Clode kept his face covered with his hands. Through his lawyer, Jane Northwood, he expressed regret for what had happened.

He cried, "I'm so ashamed," before breaking into sobs as Judge Charles Blackie began reading out his decision.

Judge Blackie said Clode's sentence would serve as an example to others.

He told Clode he had faced up to 10 years for each charge of making and distributing objectionable material and up to five years for possessing. He said the penalty was so significant following a law change in Parliament to stamp out the trafficking of pornography, particularly of children.

Judge Blackie said many of the images found in Clode's possession showed sex between adult and children, some as young as 3 years old. Some images included animals.

"You didn't have just a couple of pictures. You had 16,000. That is a considerable, that is a massive, volume."

He sentenced Clode to two years and nine months for the set of three charges, taking into account Clode's early guilty plea and that he had sought counselling. On the assault charges, Judge Blackie said Clode had committed a breach of trust of his charges.

The young Korean fee-paying student had come to live with Clode last December. He became a foster parent for two girls aged 10 and 8, and a boy aged 4 early this year, despite warnings from a priest and teacher that he was not suitable.

The Korean student still could not tell her parents of the assaults because of the shame, he said. The 10-year-old girl, meanwhile, had treated him like a father.

"But you didn't care for her, you abused her," said Judge Blackie.

These were the direct victims, although there were "thousands of victims" in the images he kept on his computer.

"The reason they get exploited is because there are people like you who collect these images."

He sentenced Clode to serve a concurrent 2 1/2-year term for the assault charges, factoring in an early guilty plea.

He said the probation officer's report did not show that Clode felt any remorse for his actions.

Judge Blackie also ordered that the images on Clode's computer be destroyed and that he continue to seek treatment.

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PROCEDURE PROBE

The Stephen Clode case has resulted in a Child, Youth and Family investigation into its procedures. Child, Youth and Family Minister Ruth Dyson said in August that procedures had been followed, including a police and medical check and two positive references.

An internal audit of caregiver assessment procedures commissioned by former chief executive Paula Tyler is due soon.