Former West Vancouver school counsellor sentenced for possessing child porn

Mulgrave School in West Vancouver is seen in an image from Google Street View.

WEST VANCOUVER, B.C. — A former counsellor from Mulgrave School in West Vancouver has been sentenced to four months in jail for possession of child pornography.

Luke Lawson was arrested in September 2020 after police found dozens of printed photos of nude girls aged eight to 13 years old inside his apartment, including a collage of them on his fridge.

The photos were from various nudism and naturalism websites, and had been altered to focus exclusively on the young girls’ naked bodies. Lawson had emailed the photos from his personal account to his work account, and then printed them off at school.

Lawson, who was fired from his job at Mulgrave, pleaded guilty to possession of child pornography. His lawyers argued for a conditional discharge, and Crown wanted him to serve six months in prison.

Because the images did not show any sexual activity, the judge said “the nature of the material was less degrading or exploitative than most (pornographic) material created online.” She said Lawson had suffered greatly for the offence, losing his job, his sense of self-worth and his relationship with his teenage daughter.

But she agreed with Crown that jail time was appropriate in this case. In sentencing the 54-year-old to four months, the judge told Lawson, “It was your duty as professional who worked with children to protect them from harm,” and “your level of moral blame is high.”

After his prison term, Lawson will be on probation for 18 months, with a long list of conditions including staying away from places where children may gather.