A LYE dad who served a prison term after child pornography was found on computer discs at his home, despite never being given access to the data on which the case against him was based, has been cleared by the nation's top judge.

Darren Wilfred Tustin, aged 41, of Cemetery Road, was sentenced to a year in prison, with another two on extended licence, after being found guilty of 13 counts of making indecent photographs of children at Wolverhampton Crown Court in October 2003.

But three top judges sitting at London's Criminal Appeal Court this week ruled his conviction "unsafe" after hearing it was "perfectly possible" that Mr Tustin had downloaded the pictures without even realising.

The Lord Chief Justice, Lord Phillips, sitting with Lord Justice Latham and Mr Justice Treacy, described how the indecent images, in the form of animated computer "thumbnails", had been found in an electronic folder on a disc at Mr Tustin's home.

The prosecution case was that Mr Tustin had downloaded the images and selected them to put into a folder on the disc, but he denied the allegation, saying the folder was downloaded in its present form without his knowledge.

The problems in the case revolved around the fact that Mr Tustin's computer expert, Dudley Hamilton, who gave evidence at the trial, was not given access to the data on which the prosecution's case was based.

In later civil proceedings involving Mr Tustin and Dudley Council, Mr Hamilton was given access to the data and concluded it was "perfectly possible" the material was downloaded and saved without Mr Tustin ever being aware of it.

The judge in that civil case concluded he was fully satisfied Mr Tustin "had not committed the offences of which he was convicted".

Mr Tustin, who has now served his jail term, was granted leave to appeal and discussions were held between his lawyers and the police.

And on Monday this week, his counsel, Nigel Hall, appeared before the three Appeal Court judges to ask them to quash the conviction.

Lord Phillips said: "The conviction is unsafe and cannot stand, and there is no basis for ordering a retrial.

"In these circumstances, we are also satisfied this appeal must be allowed and Mr Tustin's conviction quashed."