A man has been jailed for eighteen years after he pleaded guilty to the sexual abuse of two young girls over a five year period.
Sexual abuse – guilty plea
Dean Manning, of Congleton in Cheshire, pleaded guilty to 20 charges relating to sexual exploitation and ill-treatment at Cambridge Crown Court yesterday.
The 49 year old pleaded guilty to 12 counts relating to the rape, attempted rape and other sexual abuse of the two children. He also admitted six counts of inciting children to engage in sexual activity, and a further two counts of causing unnecessary suffering through ill-treatment.
Sentencing
Manning was handed 20 concurrent jail terms of at least four years each of his crimes. He was given a 26 year sentence, with an additional eight years on license as well as the eighteen year jail term. The paedophile will have to serve at least twelve years in prison before he is eligible for parole.
Judge David Farrell QC, also ordered Manning to sign the sex offenders register for life, and he was made subject to a life-long sexual harm prevention order restricting his internet usage. Furthermore, Manning had to pay a victim surcharge.
Praising the victims’ bravery in coming forward, DI Lynda Coates, from the joint child protection investigation team, said:
“This sentence reflects the seriousness of Manning’s crimes and the devastating impact his actions have had on his victims.
“His abuse of young girls spanned over a number of years, and his victims have been incredibly brave in coming forward and speaking to police.
“I believe Manning still represents a significant risk to girls so I welcome the lengthy sentence that he has been given, which will protect the public from further harm.
“If you have been a victim of sexual abuse, we have dedicated specialist officers who can support you and I would urge you to make contact with police.”
Sexual assault & abuse compensation claims – expert advice
If you have been affected by any instance of physical sexual assault or abuse or by any instance of non-physical sexual abuse, contact us today. We offer expert advice on sexual abuse claims, and we guarantee your confidentiality at all times. For further information, and to discover how we could help you, begin a conversation with our experienced and friendly team. Call 0800 888 6 888 or email .
Former TV weatherman Fred Talbot has been jailed for a total of four years for historic sex offences.
Historic sex offences
The 67 year old was a biology teacher at a Manchester school at the time of the offences. Talbot sexually assaulted the boys on various camping trips to Scotland. The attacks took place in two different locations – one near Moffat in southern Scotland, and one on the Caledonian Canal in Inverness. The offences took place between 1978 and 1981 and were against boys aged fifteen to seventeen.
Trial
During his trial, the court heard from a number of witnesses – all men now in their 50s – who spoke of how Talbot abused his position of trust.
One man, who cannot be named for legal reasons, said he was sexually assaulted after a trip to a pub had left him ‘very much worse for wear’. Another victim told the court he was sexually assaulted by Talbot on an excursion to the Caledonian Canal in 1979. He described the attack as having left him ‘petrified’.
Ian Brown, 54, former front man of Manchester band the Stone Roses, also gave evidence at the trial. Although not a victim of Talbot himself, he told the court how he would never forget how Talbot had invited one of his young friends to sleep in his tent on a school camping trip.
Sentencing
Sentencing Talbot at Lanark Sheriff Court, Sheriff Nikola Stewart told the former ITV presenter he had taken advantage of the innocence of his victims.
Talbot was jailed for a total of four years after being charged with seven historic sex offences. His sentence will commence on 14 August, after he has finished serving a previous five-year jail term for the indecent assault of two 14-year-old boys.
Sexual assault & abuse compensation claims – expert advice
If you have been affected by any instance of physical sexual assault or abuse or by any instance of non-physical sexual abuse, contact us today. We offer expert advice on sexual abuse claims, and we guarantee your confidentiality at all times. For further information, and to discover how we could help you, begin a conversation with our experienced and friendly team. Call 0800 888 6 888 or email .
A North Devon paediatrician has been jailed for the distribution of films and images containing the most severe child sex abuse.
Police raid in 2015
47 year old Dr Jonathon Walsh was arrested in 2015 after police raided his home. Officers from the child exploitation unit seized his computer and a memory stick during the search. No child sex abuse images were found at the time, however there was significant evidence that he had been accessing child sex abuse material, as well using file wiping software.
Child sex abuse images
Walsh, a respected consultant paediatrician in the children’s and adolescent services department of the Northern Devon Healthcare Trust, was sacked from his job after admitting 17 charges relating to child sex abuse images. The charges included nine counts of distributing indecent images of children, as well as six counts of making them.
Exeter Crown Court heard how Walsh told his solicitors he downloaded the content because he was ‘bored’ with his job.
The court also heard how none of the material related to patients at the North Devon District Hospital in Barnstaple. However, the vast majority of the footage related to ‘Category A’ images – the most serious of its kind – and some videos were several hours long.
Sentencing
Judge Geoffrey Mercer told him:
“Over a period of at least some months, the precise period is unclear, you were involved in downloading and distributing extreme movies and images portraying sexual abuse of children and you went to considerable lengths to try and conceal what it was you were doing. You are 47 years old and a man of good character and I have read a number of references provided by people on your behalf who speak very highly of you.
“You have practised as a paediatrician for a number of years. To state that your sexual interest in children, which outlines these offences, causes real concern in relation to someone in your position is a massive understatement. But it needs to be clearly understood that there was no offending in the context of your work and these offences were non contact offences.
“Your career is now, of course, at an end. To quote from you from one of your letters you have written to me ‘through my actions I have lost my job, my career and my reputation and caused great harm to the ones I love.”
Walsh was sentenced to three years for each of the distributing offences. He was sentenced to a further 12 months for downloading offences. All sentences will run concurrently.
NSPCC response
An NSPCC spokesman said:
“Although it has been acknowledged that none of the images related to patients at the hospital, Walsh was working in a position of significant responsibility and trust when he comitted these crimes. Behind every image of online child abuse is a child who has suffered a horrific ordeal in the real world. It’s clear from Walsh’s extensive library that his only care was his own twisted gratification and it is right that he now faces the consequences of his actions.”
Response from Northern Devon Healthcare NHS Trust
George Thomson, medical director for Northern Devon Healthcare NHS Trust, added:
“This case has deeply shaken everybody at NDHT and we know it has been a shock to the community. We have worked closely with the police throughout this case and we know that none of these crimes relate to contact offences, and none of the images relate to patients at North Devon District Hospital.
“At the launch of the police investigation in September 2015 we took immediate action to exclude Dr Walsh from working at the Trust and informed the General Medical Council. Dr Walsh was dismissed with immediate effect when he was charged in June.”
Sexual abuse claims – expert advice
If you have been affected by any instance of physical sexual abuse or non-physical sexual abuse, contact us today. We offer expert advice on sexual abuse and assault claims, and we guarantee your confidentiality at all times.
For further information, and to discover how we could help you, begin a conversation with our experienced and friendly team. Call 0800 888 6 888 or email .
A 39 year old male from Sunderland has been jailed after police found him to be in possession of over one hundred illegal images and videos, just two months after he was handed a suspended sentence for a similar offence.
Previous offence
Christopher Hutchinson was arrested in October 2015 after a tip-off to police from his internet service provider. He was found to be in possession of around 174 indecent images and videos of children and a judge handed him a suspended sentence.
However just two months later, Hutchinson was found to have started another collection of disturbing images and films involving child abuse and people having sex with animals. The images and films, over one hundred in total, were stored on numerous SD cards and were only discovered when Hutchinson was arrested and searched over an unrelated offence.
Guilty plea
In court, Hutchinson pleaded guilty to making and possessing 40 movies and 37 still images of child abuse, many of which being in the most serious category.
He also pleaded guilty to possessing 25 films and images of extreme pornography involving animals.
Sentencing Hutchinson to two years in prison, Judge Tim Gittins told him:
“It cannot be said enough, the fact that these are images available on parts of the internet does not mean it is not an abuse by you of those children to download them and use them for your sexual gratification.”
The judge added that the fact the 39 year old had started a new collection within two months of being handed his last sentence showed ‘blatant disregard’ for the last court order.
Huthinson, who is already on the Sex Offenders Register and the subject of a Sexual Harm Prevention Order, has been assessed by the probation service as posing a “high risk of serious harm to young children by the commission of this sort of offence again”.
Sexual Abuse – Expert Advice
Hampson Hughes Solicitors specialises in directing sexual abuse claims in a considerate and compassionate manner. You will be given the direct-dial of your case handler, meaning that you will always be able to reach the person you need.
For an open and friendly conversation about your situation, and to find out how we can assist you relevant to your individual experience, call 0800 888 6 888 or email .
A woman who accused Donald Trump of raping her when she was thirteen dropped her lawsuit against the Presidential candidate last week.
Alleged attack
The woman alleged that both Mr Trump and billionaire Jeffrey Epstein raped her in 1994. She claimed that Mr Trump tied her to a bed at a party in Mr Epstein’s Manhattan home before attacking her.
The alleged victim filed a lawsuit against the pair earlier in 2016 under the pseudonym Jane Doe and a tentative court date was set for the civil lawsuit against Mr Trump for 16 December 2016.
Voluntary dismissal
Thomas Meagher, one of the claimant’s lawyers, filed a voluntary one page document dismissing the case in district court in Manhattan, New York on Friday (4th November). Another lawyer for the alleged victim, Lisa Bloom, cited “numerous threats” against her client after she abruptly cancelled a planned event at which she was to speak publicly about her claims.
Ms Bloom went on to say:
“She is living in fear. She has decided that she is too afraid to show her face.
“She has been here all day, ready to do it, but unfortunately, she’s in terrible fear.”
Both Meagher and Bloom failed to immediately respond when asked by the Guardian to comment on the document filed last week.
A lawyer for the Trump Organisation claimed the allegations were “a complete fabrication” after the lawsuit was filed against him in June. Alan Garten said:
“This is basically a sham lawsuit brought by someone who desires to impact the presidential election.”
Mr Trump has always denied the allegation.
Sexual Abuse – Expert Advice
Hampson Hughes Solicitors specialises in directing sexual abuse claims in a considerate and compassionate manner. You will be given the direct-dial of your case handler, meaning that you will always be able to reach the person you need.
For an open and friendly conversation about your situation, and to find out how we can assist you relevant to your individual experience, call 0800 888 6 888 or email .
Leading criminal barristers have come forward to express their concern that the ‘over-reaction’ of some women’s rights campaigners following the Ched Evans verdict will ‘scare’ victims of sexual assault from speaking up.
Section 41 & New Evidence
Evans, a Welsh international footballer, was convicted of raping a nineteen year old woman in 2011. He served half of a five year sentence and after his release a campaign was launched to find new evidence that would eventually led to his acquittal. The court of appeal then ordered a retrial, in which the new evidence – testimony from two of the complainant’s former partners regarding her sexual history – would be heard.
In court, the two new witnesses gave evidence that the complainants past sexual behaviour with them, including the language that she used, was very similar to the account that Evans gave describing how she had acted with him during consensual sex.
At the centre of the appeal was section 41 of the Youth Justice and Criminal Evidence Act 1999. This section of the Act stops a complainant’s sexual history being used in court apart from in exceptional circumstances.
“Created a rapists’ charter”
A number of women’s rights campaigners have suggested that this decision, to allow the defence to use the complainant’s sexual history, has set the law back thirty years and created a ‘rapists’ charter’.
Women’s rights activist Julie Bindel said following Evans’ acquittal last week:
“The Ched Evans acquittal, and the way his defence was run, has led to a rapists’ charter.”
While Vera Baird, a former solicitor general for England and Wales and now the Northumbria police and crime commissioner, claimed the decision has pushed the law back by three decades.
“Counterproductive”
However in a recent article in the Guardian, the chair and chair of the Criminal Bar Association have expressed their concern that this view is ‘counterproductive’ and will undermine the confidence victims of sexual crimes have in the laws that are in place to protect them.
Chair of the Criminal Bar Association, Francis FitsGibbon QC, said:
“There’s been a huge over-reaction to what this case means. The answer is not very much. The thing that troubles me is people saying it sets the law back 30 years and it’s a rapists’ charter. That is what is going to make people think they daren’t report what’s happened to them. Those cries of anguish are a self-fulfilling prophesy.”
He added:
“The law on section 41 makes it very, very difficult to introduce evidence of someone’s previous sexual behaviour unless the judge is persuaded it would result in an unfair verdict if it wasn’t put.
“There’s an understandable emotional reaction when something like this happens. When you step back and look at what it actually does it’s an over-reaction.”
On Baird’s stance, FitzGibbon went on to say:
“Vera has for many years been a redoubtable champion of women’s rights and I’m sure she genuinely believes this a backward step for the rights of women in the criminal justice system and in society. But I happen to disagree with her. I don’t think it is. I think the language that she and others have used is counterproductive and is probably more likely to scare people off than the law itself.”
“Highlights important issues”
Vice-chair of the Criminal Bar Association and an expert on the law around sexual offences, Angela Rafferty QC, said:
“Sometimes cases involving celebrities can be a blessing in highlighting important issues.”
But she added:
“It is a disservice to victims of sex offenders to misinform them that the Ched Evans case has put the law back 30 years or has made it a rapists’ charter. That case has not changed the law. The law forbids questions about the previous sexual behaviour of a complainant in sexual offence cases, except in highly unusual circumstances where the trial would be unfair, and a wrongful conviction might result, if the evidence was not given.
“The court of appeal thought Evans’s was such a case. Cases like Evans’s will remain wholly exceptional. There is no relaxation of the rule against this type of questioning.”
Sexual Abuse – Expert Advice
Hampson Hughes Solicitors specialises in directing sexual abuse claims in a considerate and compassionate manner. You will be given the direct-dial of your case handler, meaning that you will always be able to reach the person you need.
For an open and friendly conversation about your situation, and to find out how we can assist you relevant to your individual experience, call 0800 888 6 888 or email .
A Tory MP’s aide has been arrested following an accusation of rape.
According to Metropolitan police the 23 year old male, an aide for Tory MP Craig Mackinlay, was arrested after the alleged attack occurred in the early hours of Friday morning in Westminster.
A spokesman for the Mr Mackinlay, MP for South Thanet, said:
“On Friday morning, Mr Mackinlay was made aware of an allegation against a member of his staff.
“Following a request made by the police and parliamentary services he granted full access to his Westminster office. Mr Mackinlay is currently awaiting further information from the police.”
Police officers were called to Westminster once the alleged victim spoke out. Officers have confirmed that the man has been released on bail until January as they carry out their investigation.
A Met spokesman said:
“Detectives from the sexual offences, exploitation and child abuse command are investigating an allegation of rape at the Houses of Parliament in the early hours of Friday 14 October.
“A 23-year-old man was arrested that same day on suspicion of rape. He has been bailed pending further inquiries to a date in mid-January 2017.”
Parliament is “working closely” with police, a spokesperson for the House of Commons said:
“We are aware of an incident on the parliamentary estate, which is being investigated by the Metropolitan police service. Parliament is working closely with the police on their investigation and we cannot comment further while this is ongoing.”
Sexual Abuse – Expert Advice
Hampson Hughes Solicitors specialises in directing sexual abuse claims in a considerate and compassionate manner. Our Abuse & Criminal Injuries Department is headed by Greg Neill – Greg is a member of the Association of Child Abuse Lawyers (ACAL).
For an open and friendly conversation about your situation, and to find out how we can assist you relevant to your individual experience, call 0800 888 6 888 or email .
You will be given the direct-dial of your case handler, meaning that you will always be able to reach the person you need.
The former Welsh International, Ched Evans, has today been cleared of raping a nineteen year old woman following a retrial at Cardiff Crown Court.
Evans, who served half a five year sentence after being convicted of rape in 2012, had his conviction quashed by the Court of Appeal earlier this year.
Jurors took two and a half hours to acquit Evans, after they heard new evidence relating to the claimant that surfaced last year.
Mrs Justice Davies told Evans after the decision had been read out:
“Mr Evans, you are discharged and you can leave the dock.”
Evans’ solicitor, Shaun Draycott, read a statement from the 27 year old which said that he was “overwhelmed with relief” following the verdict. He thanked his family and friends, “most notably my fiancee, Natasha, who chose, perhaps incredibly, to support me in my darkest hour”.
The statement concluded:
“Whilst my innocence has now been established, I wish to make it clear that I wholeheartedly apologise to anyone who might have been affected by the events of the night in question.”
Recap: Conviction, Appeal & Retrial
In 2012 Evans was found guilty of raping a 19 year old woman at a hotel in Rhyl, North Wales. The 27 year old was released from jail two and a half years later.
The ex-Welsh international admitted having sex with the woman, however he has always maintained his innocence, claiming the encounter was consensual.
Following a ten month investigation by the Criminal Cases Review Commission (CCRC), responsible for investigating possible miscarriages of justice, it was revealed in October 2015 that new evidence had surfaced. Following the announcement of the new evidence, which the CCRC said ‘raises a real possibility the Court of Appeal may now quash the conviction’, Evans’ case was referred to the Court of Appeal.
Lady Justice Hallet later announced that Evans’ conviction had been quashed, but that a retrial would take place.
Sexual Abuse – Expert Advice
Hampson Hughes Solicitors specialises in directing sexual abuse claims in a considerate and compassionate manner.
For an open and friendly conversation about your situation, and to find out how we can assist you relevant to your individual experience, call 0800 888 6 888 or email .
You will be given the direct-dial of your case handler, meaning that you will always be able to reach the person you need.
Multiple women have come forward to accuse US presidential candidate Donald Trump of sexual assault and inappropriate behaviour.
“Locker room banter”
The claims follow video footage that has emerged in which Mr Trump claims that he can grab women’s genitals with freedom. In the 2005 instalment of Access Hollywood that was leaked to the Washington Post, Mr Trump can be seen laughing with host Billy Bush about how being famous allowed him to kiss and grope women without their consent.
Mr Trump dismissed the comments as being “locker-room banter” and during Sunday’s debate with Hillary Clinton he insisted that he had not actually done any of the things he discussed.
Multiple Allegations
So far, the list of allegations made against Trump includes:
• An incident in which Mr Trump appears to be sexualising a ten year old girl.
• Two women who claim that Mr Trump groped or kissed them without consent, one on a first class flight.
• A People magazine reporter who claims that Mr Trump forced himself on her in 2005.
• A woman who has alleged that Trump groped her at an event at his Mar-A-Lago estate in Florida.
• Two Miss USA contestants who claimed that Mr Trump knowingly walked in on them as they were naked in a dressing room.
The encounter regarding the 10 year old girl was brought to light in video footage of a 1992 Entertainment Tonight Christmas special in which Mr Trump appeared, he was 46 at the time.
The show was filmed at Trump Tower and in the video Mr Trump asks the young if she is going up the escalator. When she tells him she is, he turns to the camera and says:
“I’m going to be dating her in 10 years. Can you believe it?”
New York Times
This week, the New York Times (NYT) published the stories of two women, both who claim that Mr Trump touched them inappropriately.
74 year old Jessica Leeds said that over thirty years ago, she sat next to Mr Trump in the first-class cabin of a New York-bound flight. According to Jessica, who had not met Mr Trump prior to this encounter, 45 minutes after take-off Trump lifted the arm rest, grabbed her breasts and attempted to put his hand up her skirt. She told the NYT that “he was like an octopus. His hands were everywhere.”
The newspaper also told the story of Rachel Crooks. Rachel claims that when she was 22 and a receptionist at a real estate investment and development company located in Trump Tower, she said hello to Mr Trump while they were in an elevator together.
According to Rachel, they shook hands, but instead of letting go, Mr Trump began to kiss her on her cheek and then on her mouth. She told the NYT:
“I was so upset that he thought I was so insignificant that he could do that.”
Other claims
Claims also emerged this week from a reporter for People Magazine, Natasha Stoynoff, who alleges that Trump forced himself on her in 2005. She wrote:
“He was pushing me against the wall, and forcing his tongue down my throat.”
She claims that Trump later told her:
“You know we’re going to have an affair, don’t you?”
A similar story was published by the Palm Beach Post, in which it is alleged that Mr Trump groped Mindy McGillivray in 2003 at his Mar-a-Lago estate, in Palm Beach, Florida.
Miss USA
A former Miss USA contestant claims that in 2001, Donald Trump deliberately walked in on her and another contestant while they were naked and getting dressed for a rehearsal. The woman, who has asked to stay anonymous, alleges that just before he entered, she heard security outside the dressing room warn someone approaching the door that the women inside were naked. She said that Trump’s attitude, she said, seemed to be: “I can do this because I can.” Adding:
“Mr Trump just barged right in, didn’t say anything, stood there and stared at us.”
“He didn’t walk in and say, ‘Oh, I’m so sorry, I was looking for someone,’”
“He walked in, he stood and he stared. He was doing it because he knew that he could.”
A second Miss USA contestant from the 2001 competition has also come forward to accuse Mr Trump of inappropriate behaviour in a separate incident. Tasha Dixon, the former Miss Arizona, recalled an incident in which Trump came “waltzing in” to a room while numerous contestants were half naked or in a state of undress.
According to Dixon, many of the contestants’ very first encounter with Mr Trump would occur while they were naked.
“He just came strolling right in. There was no second to put a robe on or any sort of clothing or anything. Some girls were topless.
“We were naked or half naked in a very physically vulnerable position,”
“And then to have the pressure of the people that worked for him telling us to go fawn all over him, go walk up to him, talk to him, get his attention.”
The unnamed contestant added that she did not report Mr Trump’s behaviour at the time, as her position was ’too tenuous’.
“This was my boss. I’m there to represent my state, my town, my reputation on one of the most prestigious stages on the planet,”
“I had not a lot of experience under my belt. And it was horrifying … It was extremely uncomfortable from there forward.”
She also said that until she saw Miss Dixon’s interview, she did not know that this could have happened to other contestants.
“It’s important for people to know that this has been a personality trait of his for a long time,”
“He completely exerted his power and the control that he had … And I do believe that kind of behavior perpetuates rape culture and makes young boys think they can behave that way.”
“I’m allowed to go in because I’m the owner of the pageant”
Trump has previously boasted during a 2005 segment of the Howard Stern show, about being able to view beauty contestants naked. In a tape obtained by CNN, Mr Trump said:
“I’ll go backstage before a show, and everyone’s getting dressed and ready and everything else,”
“And you know, no men are anywhere. And I’m allowed to go in because I’m the owner of the pageant. And therefore I’m inspecting it. ‘Is everyone OK?’ You know, they’re standing there with no clothes. And you see these incredible-looking women. And so I sort of get away with things like that.”
It has also been reported that that several teen beauty queens from the 1997 Miss Teen USA claim that Trump entered a shared dressing room while several of them were naked. One girl was just 15 years old at the time.
Sexual Abuse – Expert Advice
Hampson Hughes Solicitors specialises in directing sexual abuse claims in a considerate and compassionate manner. You will be given the direct-dial of your case handler, meaning that you will always be able to reach the person you need.
For an open and friendly conversation about your situation, and to find out how we can assist you relevant to your individual experience, call 0800 888 6 888 or email .
A woman was robbed and raped after being pinned to the ground in Manchester city centre last week.
Incident
The victim, an 18 year old, was approached by a man in the early hours of Wednesday 21st September, before she was pinned down by both a man and a woman, whilst a second female robbed her.
The teenager was then raped by the male assailant before all three offenders fled the scene.
A detective from Greater Manchester police’s serious sexual offences unit, DI Dave Moores said:
“This was a horrendous attack on a young woman which has, understandably, left her extremely distressed.
“We are providing her with support from specially trained officers and have launched a full investigation.”
Police appeal
Both female offenders are described as having a Manchester accent and their hair styled into ponytails.
The first woman, who restrained the victim during the robbery, is said to be of mixed race, slim and around 18 years old.
The woman who committed the robbery is also described as mixed race and to be in her early 20s.
The male offender is described as white, of slim build and in his early 20s. He is also described to have a clean shaven face and was wearing sports clothing at the time of the incident.
Greater Manchester police are asking for anyone, who may have seen group matching the description of the offenders between 2am and 3am on Wednesday 21st September around Major Street and the city’s Gay Village area, to contact them.
Anybody with information should contact police on 0161 856 1911 or the independent charity Crimestoppers, anonymously, on 0800 555 111.
Sexual abuse claims – expert advice
Hampson Hughes Solicitors specialises in directing sexual abuse claims in a considerate and compassionate manner. You will be given the direct-dial of your case handler, meaning that you will always be able to reach the person you need. More detailed information regarding sexual abuse claims can be found here.
For an open and friendly conversation about your situation, and to find out how we can assist you relevant to your individual experience, call 0800 888 6 888 or email .
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