BROOMFIELD — A former nonprofit director who previously pleaded guilty to one count of sexual exploitation of a child was sentenced Thursday to probation.
Terence “Terry” Kiernan, 65, of Broomfield was sentenced to 10 years of sex offense intensive supervised probation for .
He declined to comment after the hearing but in court apologized to FISH, a nonprofit organization that provides assistance with food and housing to the community, to families and to victims.
“I am disgusted with myself,” Kiernan told the court. “I deeply regret all of the harm I have caused.”
Kiernan acknowledged that children in the videos he downloaded are victims. He said he doesn’t know any, nor has he had direct contact with any of the children.
Broomfield District Court Judge Francis Wasserman ordered Kiernan to perform 150 hours of community service and pay $2,700 in fees and fines. Kiernan submitted a $2,134 check to replace computers at FISH, computers he had used to download child porn while at work. He was the organization’s executive director when he was arrested in June.
Dressed in a dark suit, with a white shirt and tie, Kiernan was accompanied by his wife, Joan, and a family friend. Joan Kiernan, who has been married to her husband for 44 years, submitted a letter to the court asking for probation.
She referred to Kiernan, who is a grandfather, as a “trusted and loyal friend … a stand-up guy.”
Joan Kiernan’s letter also said: “I am married to a very good person who made a very bad choice.”
She did not address the court directly.
to one count of sexual exploitation of a child. In exchange for Kiernan’s guilty plea, prosecutors dismissed two other counts — one count of sexual exploitation of a child for distributing child pornography, a Class 3 felony, and one count of sexual exploitation of a child for a video containing child pornography, a Class 4 felony.
Wasserman warned: “We are going to keep an eye on you for the next 10 years.”
