Trial for Swampscott child porn suspect under way

SWAMPSCOTT – A former Malden reading teacher living in Swampscott who faces child pornography charges is on trial today in Lawrence Superior Court.Stephen Surette, 53, of 32 Allen Road, Swampscott was charged with 12 counts of child pornography and three counts of possession of pornography with the intent to disseminate in connection with alleged incidents on or about April 2003 to May 17, 2006.Surette, who has pleaded innocent to all of the charges, was arrested at his home May 16, 2006 following a six-month investigation. Authorities seized his Dell computer, videotapes and computer disks. A forensic examination of his computer revealed child pornography, video clips and other digital images located within different sections of the hard drive. He was indicted in August 2006 on child pornography and dissemination of child pornography charges by an Essex County grand jury. Surette, the father of two children, is now on leave from his job at the Malden school. Surette, who has been free on $1,000 since arraignment in Lynn District Court, faces up to five years in state prison on each of the child pornography charges and up to 20 years in state prison on each of the dissemination of child pornography offenses.Surette’s trial on charges of possessing and disseminating child pornography got under way Wednesday in Lawrence Superior Court. Richard Falanga, a forensics expert for the Essex County district attorney, is expected to testify Surette not only had the images on his computer and on a CD, but had deleted other images and was using his son’s log-in to surf the Web.In earlier interviews with The Daily Item, Defense lawyer David G. Twohig acknowledged pornographic images were found on Surette’s computer but he said they were downloaded accidentally through a file sharing program known as Kazaa. Twohig is expected to call an expert computer forensic witness, Thomas Workman, who will testify how the images were downloaded accidentally by Surette onto his computer.According to police reports, police were led to Surette after the Department of Homeland Security became involved in an investigation into a German pornographer last November.Surette’s e-mail address had been recorded by the pornographer. The Immigration and Customs Enforcement tracked his identity down through the Internet service provider who turned over the name to Swampscott police.Swampscott Police Detective Ted Delano spearheaded the investigation and was assisted by Police Sgt. Tim Cassidy and State Police Sgt. Thomas Neff.According to police reports, when Surette, who used the screen name ssmil123, was interviewed by police he told them he likes to drink and look at pornography on Sunday, then deletes the images.”He stated he was not supposed to be drinking and on Sundays he drinks,” reads an incident report, prepared by Swampscott Police. “When drinking, he looks at the image, then deletes it. (Surette) stated he has been doing this for five to 10 years.”Surette allegedly told police there were child and adult pornographic images on his computer – at least two undeleted images featuring a minor at the time police confronted him – pornography featuring elderly women and “slap happy movies of porn,” according to police reports. Surette reportedly told police he only viewed the pornography – telling officers he had “an obsession with pornography” but did not distribute it or actively molest children.The images found on his computer include a child known to authorities and missing, another depicts a mom with her 13-year-old son and another image of a girl with a stuffed animal.Surette, who taught fifth grade reading at the Forestdale Elementary School in Malden, remains free on $1,000 cash bail, with the conditions he remain drug and alcohol free, submit to random screenings, not use a computer and report twice a month to probation until his case is resolved.Judge Richard E. Welch, III is presiding over the trial, which is expected to last a week.