HOLLIDAYSBURG – An Altoona man arrested a year ago after hundreds of child pornography images were found on his computer is advocating the benefits of mental health counseling and sexual offenders treatment as he begins a county prison sentence of eight to 23½ months’ incarceration.

Dennis Paul Page, 71, said Tuesday in Blair County Court that his counseling sessions and Project Point of Light’s programs helped him conclude that he is 100% responsible for his actions and should use his experience to help others. Project Point of Light is a regional agency specializing in treatment for sex offenders and those affected by sexual abuse.

“My goal is to make something good out of this,” Page told Senior Judge Timothy M. Sullivan.

Sullivan imposed a sentence that was negotiated after Page, on Sept. 5, entered guilty pleas to 10 felony counts of possession of child pornography for a to-be-determined sentence and the withdrawal of 41 additional child pornography counts.

In court on Tuesday, state Deputy Attorney General Jacob Jividen presented the negotiated sentence, which he said fell within the standard range of the state sentencing guidelines of eight to 14 months’ incarceration for child pornography possession. Jividen also said that the negotiated plea requires Page’s incarceration time to be followed by 10 years’ probation.

Defense attorney Ted Krol spoke in favor of the negotiated sentence with support from licensed social worker John Grove, who referenced Page’s success with mental health counseling and through Project Point of Light. Grove said Page pursued those options after being released on bail from the county prison, eight days after his arrest.

“If he had remained in prison, he would have never had access to that counseling,” Grove said.

Sullivan said in court that he hopes Page is able to follow through with his desire to use his experience in ways that help others.

“We don’t have enough mental health counselors in Blair County or enough counselors to help people in your position,” Sullivan said.

“I’m going to be helpful when I come out,” Page assured the judge.

Sullivan said he accepted and imposed the negotiated sentence in light of Page’s age, his rehabilitation efforts, his acceptance of responsibility and no prior record. Page, until retiring on Feb. 29, 2012, taught English at the Greater Altoona Career and Technology Center.

Charges against Page developed after the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children identified the uploading of computer files with child pornography, then traced it to his residence on Ivyside Drive.

Altoona police, working with the agents from the state office of attorney general, secured a search warrant for Page’s residence in February 2023, leading to his arrest. When executing the warrant, Page told officers that he was collecting the images as research for a novel, but officers found little evidence of the novel.

In light of his convictions and sentence, Page becomes a Tier I sex offender, requiring him, upon release from prison, to regularly register his address and related information with state police for 15 years.

Mirror Staff Writer Kay Stephens is at 814-946-7456.