An Alberta pediatrician faces a conviction for child pornography offences

An Alberta pediatrician is awaiting sentencing on child pornography charges.

Dr. Ghassan Al-Naami was found guilty of possessing and distributing child pornography in August.

An Edmonton Court of King’s Bench judge ruled that in 2019, Al-Naami received and then sent a video via Skype depicting child sexual exploitation accompanied by an explicit text exchange that also constitutes child pornography.

Al-Naami was previously a pediatrician at the Bright Futures Clinic in Edmonton. He also worked in Fort McMurray from 2012 to 2017.

The child sexual abuse material was not related to his work and did not involve any of his patients.

But prosecutor Parm Johal said on Wednesday that Al-Naami’s role meant he understood the impact of his behavior all too well.

“This perpetrator has damaged the trust of society based on his profession,” Johal said.

“Who better than a pediatrician should know about the harm these types of crimes do to children? These are exactly the individuals our society brings our vulnerable children to in our moments of weakness and vulnerability as parents.”

The Crown’s position is that in addition to the video, six online text exchanges from 2018 constitute written child pornography, and online searches from 2015 and 2016 indicate Al-Naami was looking for the material.

Lawyer Zachary Al-Khatib said the searches do not prove beyond reasonable doubt that this is the case, and that the violations are limited only to online activity in April 2019.

License to practice medicine suspended

Al-Naami was released on court order after his arrest in 2019. In 2021, he was allowed to see patients again under strict guidelines.

According to the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Alberta, his license to practice medicine has now been suspended, barring him from providing patient care.

No disciplinary action is planned against him, but a spokesperson for the CPSA said the case will be dealt with under the regulator’s usual procedures once the criminal proceedings have been completed.

Under the Health Professions Act, a criminal conviction is considered unprofessional conduct warranting disciplinary action, up to and including revocation of the license, the CPSA said.

The Crown submitted this week that Al-Naami should be sentenced to two years, minus one day, in a provincial prison.

His two convictions both carry mandatory minimum sentences of one year in prison.

Al-Khatib asked Judge Kent Davidson of the Court of King’s Bench to strike down that provision and instead sentence his client to house arrest.

The defense’s sentencing submissions included evidence from forensic psychologist Dr. Liam Ennis. His assessment of Al-Naami concluded that he poses a low risk of reoffending. Ennis recommends that Al-Naami receive treatment in a community setting.

Al-Khatib said his client is receiving support from people willing to help in his rehabilitation.

“The impact of him being placed in a facility with more serious offenders is likely to have a negative impact on him, increasing rather than reducing the risk of reoffending,” he said.

The Crown questioned some of the report’s methods and conclusions, arguing that Ennis had not been given a full account of the evidence presented in court.

Johal said the assessment also relied too heavily on Al-Naami’s self-reporting. Ennis noted that he did not believe parts of what Al-Naami told him, and that he continued to deny wrongdoing.

The defense said the convictions are an “anomaly” in Al-Naami’s life and that he has already lost his livelihood. He has no previous criminal record.

Johal said the harm from child sexual abuse material is far-reaching, and expert evidence presented in court noted that Al-Naami has shown a lack of insight or remorse.

“If we detect and successfully prosecute these crimes, the courts must send an unequivocal message that these crimes will result in significant prison sentences,” she said.

“This was not a mistake. It was not an isolated or impulsive act.”

The judge’s ruling is expected later this year. No date has been scheduled yet.