Oxford University professor, 63, who published a paper on whether child pornography could be ‘morally acceptable’ is jailed for seven months for having 3,000 indecent images of children on his computer
- Peter King, 63, wrote essay on Ethics of Child Pornography at Oxford University
- The philosophy lecturer was found with 3,000 indecent images on his computer
- Had previously been cautioned by police for using search terms like ‘schoolgirl’
- He was jailed at Oxford Crown Court for seven months and put under a Sexual Harm Prevention Order
An Oxford university professor who wrote an essay on the Ethics of Child Pornography while working at the prestigious campus, has today been jailed for accessing indecent images of children.
Philosophy lecturer Peter King had previously been cautioned by police for looking up search terms like ‘schoolgirl’ on his computer, a court heard, but he had claimed he was only doing it as research for his academic paper.
The 63-year-old had written an essay titled No Plaything: Ethical issues concerning child-pornography, which was accepted into a prestigious academic journal in 2007, prosecutors said.
Philosophy lecturer Peter King had today been jailed for seven months and placed under a Sexual Harm Prevention Order for accessing thousands of indecent images of children
A summary of the piece he published 12 years ago reads: ‘I look at the question of harm to the children involved, the consumers, and society in general, at the question of blame, and at the possibility of a morally acceptable form of child-pornography.’
He had been a lecturer working for Pembroke College, Oxford which suspended King after he admitted making indecent images of children, a judge was told.
The college said that it had only been made aware of the charges against King the day before his court appearance where he entered a guilty plea in February.
A spokesman for the Crown Prosecution Service said: ‘Almost 3,000 indecent images of children and more than 300 prohibited images were found on his computer.
‘Peter King was found to have accessed a number of websites known for sharing indecent images of children.
King, who taught at Oxford University’s Pembroke College had previously been cautioned by police for looking up search terms like ‘schoolgirl’ on his computer
‘Analysis of his computer and hard drives showed regular access to indecent sites and his search history included “schoolgirl”.’
Judge Maria Lamb, sitting at Oxford Crown Court, told King his offending was so serious that the only appropriate punishment would be an immediate custodial term.
The judge jailed King for seven months and made him subject to a Sexual Harm Prevention Order.
Paula Appiah, a Senior Crown Prosecutor, said: ‘King held an esteemed position at a prestigious university, but his actions fell far short of the law.
‘The law is in place to protect young children and we are dedicated to bringing perpetrators of this crime to justice.’
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