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Nov 08, 2009 (Boston Herald - McClatchy-Tribune Information Services via COMTEX) -- Cops who spend their shifts trolling the Internet for child predators say they aren't surprised by a study that found some officers are traumatized by the sickening porn images they see daily.

Some 500 officers who combat cyber crimes against children completed an online University of New Hampshire survey, which found that one in 10 saw health, marital, work or sexual problems arising from the barrage of images.

"It's something you really have to watch and be concerned about," said Detective James McLaughlin, a Keene, N.H., cop who scours online chatrooms for men trying to prey on boys. "It's good to see other people are looking at it so management will be aware of the risks to those in the field."

Janis Wolak, senior researcher at the UNH Crimes Against Children Research Center, said the study, released Tuesday, should force agencies to provide support.

"It's a new problem for law enforcement. This is a new kind of stress that needs to be addressed," she said. The study found that 40 percent thought more mental health services were needed; that seeing disturbing sexual images affected officers' sexual relationships and marriages; and some cops had work-related problems including anger, loss of objectivity and drops in productivity.

Medford police Detective Lt. John J. McLean, who heads the cyber crime unit of the North Eastern Massachusetts Law Enforcement Council, said he's never seen adverse effects among co-workers, but there are "inherent risks and dangers to investigators who have prolonged exposure" to child porn.

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Jessica Fargen

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