Jack Daniel Dwyer pleads guilty to indecent treatment of child in Bundaberg

A Bundaberg childcare worker has avoided a prison sentence and will not have a conviction recorded after pleading guilty to one count of indecent treatment of a child under 12.

A man pleaded guilty to one count of indecent treatment of a child.

A Bundaberg court has heard how a man who indecently dealt with a child under the age of 12 told police he knew what he did was wrong, but was acting out of curiosity.

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In Bundaberg District Court on Thursday, Jack Daniel Dwyer pleaded guilty to one count of indecent treatment of a child under 12.

The court heard Dwyer had initially confessed his crime to a colleague, however the child who had been abused was not a child in his care at his workplace.

It was heard the man had touched the child on the bottom and thigh before telling them a number of times to take off their underwear, a request the child repeatedly refused.

It was further heard that after the child denied his requests several times, Dwyer stopped the offending which left the child in tears.

When police questioned Dwyer, he told them “I did it”, saying he knew his actions were wrong but committed them because he was curious.

Bundaberg Court House.

While prison is not a sentence of last resort in cases of sexual abuse of children, Crown Prosecutor Annica Fritz told the court there was the possibility of “exceptional circumstances” in whether the courts should choose to record a conviction in Dwyer’s case, citing his otherwise “unblemished” history and because “it was a very low level of offending”.

She cited the young childcare worker’s prospects of rehabilitation and his willingness to make full admissions to both his colleague and police.

The case for not recording a conviction was furthered by barrister Jens Streit, who said his client had been a young offender of 22 at the time, had suffered a difficult early life with his social interactions and had been diagnosed with both autism spectrum disorder and major depressive disorder.

In sentencing, Judge John Allen said the defendant's early plea of guilty in the case had been indicative of remorse.

“It’s alarming that you would behave in such a way to a young child,” he said.

Judge Allen ultimately decided there were exceptional circumstances in order to not record a conviction against Dwyer.

He noted factors including the defendant’s psychiatric history, his young age at the time of the offence, his prompt admissions and signs of remorse.

“Although any sexual offending against a child is a serious matter, the offending in your case is towards the lower end of the range of seriousness for such an offence,” Judge Allen said.

“You would not be able to return to a childcare position without a Blue Card and the fact of this offending would be relevant to that whether or not a conviction was recorded.

“Recording a conviction would likely have an impact on your economic or social wellbeing, and chances of finding employment weigh against the recording of a conviction.”

Dwyer was sentenced to two years’ probation, no conviction was recorded.