BishopAccountability.org
	Statement Following Sentencing of Dominic Stone Anglican Diocese of Litchfield December 16, 2010 http://www.lichfield.anglican.org/news&newsID=784 The Revd Dominic Stone, who was last month convicted of downloading indecent images of children, has today been given a suspended prison sentence. The judge said that as Dominic Stone now admitted his guilt and was seeking appropriate help to curb his behaviour, a suspended sentence was appropriate. Stone was given 16 nine month sentences, all to be served concurrently and all suspended for two years. In addition he was subject to a two year supervision order and must complete a sex offender's treatment programme. He was also banned from seeking any employment or voluntary position which would bring him into contact with young people; he must not access the Internet without the prior approval of his supervising officer. He was also ordered to sign the sex offender's register for the next 10 years. Gavin Drake, director of communications for the Bishop and Diocese of Lichfield, said: "Dominic Stone resigned his position as Team Vicar of Marchington, Marchington Woodlands, Kingstone and Leigh following his conviction last month. He no longer holds any position within the Church of England. And he does not possess a licence to serve or minister as a priest. "His resignation does not remove him from the Church of England's disciplinary processes; and while not licensed he remains under the authority of the Bishop. "The Penalty Guidelines, under the Clergy Discipline Measure, recognise that 'every indecent photograph of a child is an image of a child being abused or exploited'. "The Guidelines state that: 'Downloading such photographs continues the injury done to the victim through further dissemination of the pictures. Children suffer shame and distress continuing into adulthood from the knowledge that indecent images of them are in circulation. Anyone convicted of possessing child pornography should be regarded as complicit with the original abuse involved in the making of the images. "'There can be no realistic expectation that a convicted cleric could be safely restored into ministry. Removal from office and prohibition for life should normally be imposed.' "The Bishop of Lichfield will now consult Lord Justice Mummery, a High Court Judge who sits as the President of Tribunals and Chairman of the Clergy Discipline Commission; and await the Court's Certificate of Conviction, as he is required to do by law, before imposing the penalty. "Incidents like this are extremely rare. Parents and the wider public can be assured that the Church of England has robust procedures in place to protect the children entrusted to our care; and that the protection of children is of primary importance. "We would to take this opportunity to thank Staffordshire Police, and the other agencies involved, for keeping the diocese informed during what has been a lengthy process. It has been almost two years between the start of the investigation to today's sentencing; and the bishops, archdeacon and diocese are fully aware of the strain that this has had on the parishes. "We would like thank the congregations and ministry team for their patience over these past 23 months and assure them that work on appointing a replacement priest is underway. Advertisements will appear in the New Year. "Finally we would assure everybody involved, particularly child victims of abuse and sexual assault, of our continuing thoughts, prayers and vigilance."
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