R v Bowden
It was accepted in the Bowden case that s.1(1)(a) of the 1978 Act covered those making pseudo-photographs who may have had no contact with the subjects of the images. But it also covered those making copies of photographs by knowingly copying the photograph.
The wording in s.1 of the 1978 Act as amended was clear and unambiguous. The words "to make" had to be given their natural and ordinary meaning, and in the instant context that was "to cause to exist; to produce by action, to bring about".
The implications of this judgement were extensive - not only did it confirm that those downloading indecent images from the Internet were breaking the law, it also meant that law enforcement officers committed the same offence when they made a copy of the contents of suspects' computer disks. This led to amendments to the Protection of Children Act by the Sexual Offences Act 2003 to create a statutory defence where it was necessary "to make the photograph or pseudo-photograph for the purposes of the prevention, detection or investigation of crime, or for the purposes of criminal proceedings".
Page Created: Tue, October 12th, 2004
Page Modified: Thu, April 28th, 2005
