AUBURN — The former publisher of a local magazine and organizer of a community film festival who served on the Auburn City Council was indicted Wednesday on nearly a dozen child pornography charges.

Joshua Shea, 38, of 30 Paul St. has been free on $500 cash with bail conditions, including no contact with anyone under age 18. He’s also barred from having access to the Internet.

Investigators from the Maine Computer Crimes Task Force seized Shea’s computer March 20. He was arrested and charged with a single count of possessing sexually explicit materials.

On Wednesday, an Androscoggin County grand jury handed up an indictment including 10 charges of possession of sexually explicit materials that depicted a person younger than 12 engaging in sexually explicit conduct. Each of those charges is punishable by up to five years in prison.

Shea also was charged with two counts of sexual exploitation of a minor. In those cases, Shea intentionally or knowingly used, solicited, enticed, persuaded or compelled a minor to engage in sexually explicit conduct, knowing the conduct would be or wanting it to be photographed, according to the indictment. That means he is accused of getting a minor to engage in sexually explicit conduct and capturing that image to preserve it for future viewing.

Each of those two counts is punishable by up to 10 years in prison.

Shea’s attorney, David Van Dyke, has said Shea had been in a course of counseling since April at an intensive, out-of-state residential facility.

He said Shea is in a long-term course of counseling “that’s going to address the issues that led him to where he is now. I think he’s doing all the right things,” but added, “The issues are not the kind that one would think they are from the nature of the allegations. They are somewhat different things.”

Van Dyke said his client is “a high-performing guy. He looks to get past this and continue doing what he has done well in the future.”

Shea served on the Auburn City Council for one term, ending last year. After his arrest, the annual Lewiston Auburn Film Festival, which Shea helped found, was canceled when a number of filmmakers withdrew. In the following weeks, other festival organizers regrouped to create the Emerge Film Festival, which debuted in June to positive reviews.

Shea was fired in March from his job as publisher of Lewiston Auburn Magazine, whose offices have since closed. Several of the owners of that magazine are supporting Friday’s launch of a new Twin Cities area magazine called Current, according to a news release.

cwilliams@sunjournal.com