Graham Pearson, A former Mayor and Primary School Teacher was been given a Caution by police for Possessing Child Porn.after his arrest at his Cherry Crescent home in Balladen, Rawtenstall, on September the 10th 2007 for having 'Indecent Photographs, or Pseudo-Photographs, of Children'.
Pearson was bailed to return to Rawtenstall police station while officers considered whether additional charges should be brought against him, but Pearson, who is a former Council Leader, was formally cautioned when he attended his 1pm appointment.
A Lancashire Police spokesman said "Lancashire Constabulary have given an adult caution to a 54-year-old man from the Rossendale area for possession of indecent photographs, or pseudo photographs, of children. The man was first arrested on September the 10th, 2007, at around 11.30am, at his home address."
When asked about the caution, Pearson said "I have no comment to make." He did confirm, however, that he no longer worked as a teacher.
Pearsons career included:
* Hareholme ward councillor until the summer 2004 elections, and also served as Mayor of Rossendale in 1991/92.
* For four years from 1985 he served as a Lancashire county councillor for Rossendale East ward, but stood down prior to the 1989 elections.
* He was also a governor at Staghills Nursery and Newchurch CE Primary.
* While mayor of Rossendale, he worked as a Teacher at a Primary School in Oldham.
Under Councillor Pearson, Labour regained control of Rossendale council in May 2002 after two years of Tory rule, but the new administration quickly encountered problems after the Audit Commission published a report rating Rossendale as the worst council in the country. Pearson, who had heart surgery in 1999, stepped down as council leader in December 2003, citing health reasons as a key factor. He lost his ward seat to the Conservatives' Chris Wadsworth at the following year's elections.
A spokeswoman for the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) said two types of cautions can be handed out, either with or without conditions. She said: "In accordance with Home Office guidelines the police have the power to caution people without referring the matter to the CPS." adding "They can also refer the matter to us and we have to consider the circumstances of each individual case to determine what is appropriate."