Former Bishop of Truro Spokesman Jeremy Dowling Jailed for Seven Years for Child Sex Offences
West Briton
THE FORMER communications chief for the Bishop of Truro has been jailed for seven years for sexually abusing young boys. Jeremy Dowling, 77, of Church Path, Bude, admitted 15 counts of sexually abusing boys under the age of 13 while he was teacher at a boarding school in Cornwall between 1959 and 1972. The charges relate to offences against five young boys who were students at the school. Truro Crown Court was told the victims were his "favourites" and he groomed them by giving them sweets and gifts. Garth Richardson, prosecuting, said Dowling assaulted the boys at sporting events, in their dormitories and in toilets at the school. One of the offences took place on a train and another at his home, where he lived with his wife who was pregnant at the time, the court was told. Mr Richardson said police launched an investigation into allegations against Dowling in 1972. He said the matter was dropped because "some parents did not want to put their children through it [the court process]" and they did not want the school to suffer "the bad publicity". Dowling resigned from his post at the school after the allegations were made but no charges were made against him. Police launched a second investigation after one of Dowling's victims came forward in February 2013. Mark Barlow, mitigating, said Dowling had been a dedicated member of the Anglican church and had been a governor at Budehaven School for many years. He said Dowling, who retired as communications officer for the Truro Diocese in 2009, having worked for several bishops over the previous 25 years, had not offended since he left his job at the school. "For over 45 years, this man has not re-offended," he said. He said by pleading guilty to his crimes, Dowling had saved his victims from having to go through a trial. Today at Truro Crown Court Judge Graham Cottle sentenced Dowling, who has no previous convictions, to a total of seven years in prison. He told the pensioner he would have been sentenced to 11 years but he had been given credit for his guilty pleas. Judge Cottle said: "By all accounts you were very well regarded as a teacher at that school and you were active in many positive ways in connection with life at the school. "However you took advantage of your position to groom, abuse and to some extent manipulate these young boys." He continued: "It was a breach of the trust placed in you by the boys themselves and of course by their parents, who were entitled to expect that their children would be safe and properly cared for." Speaking after the hearing the lead officer in the case, DC Grant Mills, of Devon and Cornwall Police, said he was "very satisfied" with the sentence given. "I am very happy," he said. "Hopefully it will provide closure to the victims who have had to wait a long time for this." He said he hoped the case would encourage other victims of abuse to come forward. He said: "It sends out the message that no matter how long ago it [the abuse] happened we will listen to you and we will try our best to bring it to a conclusion like today." In a statement, the Right Reverend Tim Thornton, Bishop of Truro, said he hoped the sentence will provide Dowling's victims with "some sense of justice being done". He added: "We would like to continue to reassure people that the safeguarding of children and vulnerable adults is always of paramount importance to us. "We make every effort to ensure their well-being at every level in the diocese. "The church is currently working on new training, legislation and guidance. "Our safeguarding work is informed by the voices and experiences of survivors."
|
.
Any original material on these pages is copyright © BishopAccountability.org 2004. Reproduce freely with attribution.