COLWOOD, B.C. — A former RCMP officer on Vancouver Island has received the mandatory minimum six month jail sentence for possession of child pornography.
Former Sidney-North Saanich officer Dale Sheets was immediately taken into custody following Wednesday's decision in Western Communities provincial court in Colwood, outside Victoria.
Sheets pleaded guilty last October to the offences, which occurred in 2013.
In passing sentence, the judge accepted defence arguments that Sheets' actions were influenced by post-traumatic stress disorder he developed during two decades of service with the RCMP.
A psychiatric report found Sheets is a low risk to reoffend.
He will serve 18-months probation once released, must not access to the Internet and must have no contact with anyone under 16 unless a parent is present.
