Award‑winning Australian children’s author Craig Silvey jailed over child exploitation material

Australian author Craig Silvey has been jailed for seven months for possessing and distributing child exploitation material. Police found images and videos on his laptop and phone when they raided his home in Fremantle. The 44-year-old father of three had pleaded guilty. A judge in the Western Australian district court called the offending serious and disturbing. Two other charges were dropped in May.

Silvey is best known for Jasper Jones, a 2009 novel studied in schools and turned into a film and stage plays. The book is often called a modern Australian classic. He also wrote Honeybee, which won an indie book award, and the children's novel Runt. His publishers stopped promoting his books after he was charged. Most of his titles were removed from school reading lists around the country.

The case shows that fame does not protect people from child abuse laws. It also forces schools to rethink an author many students once trusted.