The Crown is recommending that the former vice-principal of an Abbotsford middle school be sentenced to up to three years in prison for two child-pornography offences.
But Mike Haire’s lawyer suggested on Monday (May 16) that a sentence of 12 to 15 months would be more appropriate.
Both lawyers also recommended that Haire’s jail term be followed by three years’ probation.
Haire’s sentencing hearing took place in B.C. Supreme Court in New Westminster after he was previously convicted of making child porn available and possessing child porn.
The parties are due back in court June 2 to set a date for the judge’s decision.
Haire, 41, was an administrator at W.A. Fraser Middle School when he was charged in September 2018.
The investigation began after a six-second video file containing child sexual abuse was uploaded from a cellphone to Instagram. The customer connected to the IP address was confirmed to be Haire.
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Police executed a search warrant at Haire’s residence that resulted in the seizure of 26 electronic devices. Hundreds of images and videos constituting child sexual abuse were found on six of the devices or hardware seized, the court was previously told.
Crown counsel Dorothy Tsui said Monday that investigators found on the devices a “large and substantial collection” of images depicting child sexual abuse.
She said “the vast majority” of the material was of boys from the ages of five to 12.
She said the images showed the children nude or partially nude and posed in a sexual manner alone or with other boys.
Tsui said investigators also obtained Haire’s chat logs that included him communicating with under-age kids and requesting or exchanging images of child sexual abuse.
She said Haire’s offences are at “the higher end of the spectrum” and his sentence should reflect that. She recommended he receive 12 to 18 months for the possession charge and 24 to 36 months for making the material available, to be served concurrently.
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Defence lawyer Vincent Michaels said Haire has been remorseful and ashamed about his behaviour, and has been immersed in treatment programs to try to understand his actions and prevent them from happening again.
Michaels said Haire had a strict Mormon upbringing in which homosexuality was viewed as “an extremely unnatural and wrongful thing to do.” He said Haire “maintained a false identity” for most of his life, becoming increasingly depressed and isolated into his mid-30s and making harmful choices.
But that doesn’t excuse Haire’s action, Michaels said.
“To be very clear, he knew what he was doing and he knew that it was wrong,” he said.
Michaels said Haire’s offences should not erase the many years he had of “positive contributions” as first a teacher at Clayburn Middle School from 2006 to 2015 and then vice-principal at W. A. Fraser Middle School.
He said Haire now works as a “service technician” and is engaged to be married to his partner. Haire no longer lives in Abbotsford nor does he use social media, Michaels said.
He said a jail term of 12 to 15 months should satisfy the sentencing principles of denunciation and deterrence.
vhopes@abbynews.com
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