Babysitter Suzanne Holdsworth not guilty of murder

Suzanne Holdsworth always denied murdering the toddler

A babysitter who spent three years in prison for the murder of a neighbour's two-year-old son has been found not guilty at a retrial.

Suzanne Holdsworth had been accused of banging Kyle Fisher's head against a banister in Hartlepool in July 2004.

Ms Holdsworth, 38, now of Boggart Hill Drive, Leeds, was convicted in 2005.

However, doubts were raised about her conviction by journalist John Sweeney in a report for BBC Newsnight and it was quashed in May.

The jury at the retrial at Teesside Crown Court deliberated for two days before returning the not guilty verdict.

The mother-of-two was originally convicted of the murder in March 2005 and jailed for life.

Kyle: "Unlikely to have suffered massive blow to head" Freed babysitter's jail torment

She was released from prison earlier this year after serving three years.

A spokesman for Cleveland Police said the force would not be reopening the case and would not be apologising to Ms Holdsworth, while the CPS defended the police's right to bring the case to court a second time.

During Ms Holdsworth's original trial she was accused of repeatedly banging Kyle's head against a wooden banister with as much force as a 60mph crash after losing her temper.

The Newsnight programme interviewed leading neuro-pathologist Dr Wainey Squier who later gave evidence for the defence in the retrial.

She said it was "unlikely" Kyle had suffered a massive blow to the head.

During the retrial the court heard the youngster had bruising and marks to his head but Ms Holdsworth's defence maintained they were inflicted the previous day - blaming Kyle's mother - and coupled with his brain abnormalities, led to the unexpected fit.

'Terrible experience'

Professor Renzo Guerrini, a paediatric neurologist at the University of Florence Children's Hospital, said: "In my opinion there is compelling evidence he had some head injury before this night.

"This might have been trivial but sufficient enough to produce bleeding on the brain which triggered the epileptic seizure which because of Kyle's brain condition was possibly prolonged."

Lee Spencer speaks on behalf of his partner, Suzanne Holdsworth

Standing next to Ms Holdsworth outside the court on Thursday, her partner Lee Spencer said: "This case has always been about Kyle, who was a loving child, a little boy, who Suzanne's always loved and helped look after.

"We know his family deeply loved him and miss him.

"Sadly we now know that he had some bad medical features that led to his sudden collapse and death.

"We hope that this knowledge will help his family come to terms with his death.

"This has been a terrible experience for Suzanne and our family and we now just want to try and pick up the pieces of our lives together."

Middlesbrough based Police Officer in court over GBH charge

Posted by Evening Gazette on October 7, 2008 11:21 AM | Permalink

A CLEVELAND Police officer has appeared in court charged with causing grievous bodily harm.

PC Simon Atkins, 36, who is based in Middlesbrough but is currently suspended, appeared before magistrates at Teesside Magistrates Court yesterday.Monday

He is charged in connection with an incident in which a 32-year-old man was arrested in Middlesbrough on September 30, 2007.

The allegation follows an investigation by the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC).

In a brief hearing, the case was adjourned until October 14 and PC Atkins was granted unconditional bail until that date. No plea was entered.

Jul 28 2008 by Simon Walton, Evening Gazette

CLEVELAND Police Chief Constable Sean Price today defended his force’s record - despite figures showing Teessiders suffer more crimes per person than anywhere else in the UK.

New Home Office figures for recorded crime reveal that for every 1,000 people living on Teesside, there were 119 crimes recorded in 2007-2008 - the highest in the UK. The national average was 91 crimes.

But Mr Price today said the “recorded” crime figures were misleading and an alternative survey had found that Teesside has one of the lowest figures for crimes against the person in the UK.

The two sets of figures were revealed in a Home Office report into crime in England and Wales for 2007-2008.

Recorded crimes are those offences reported to or noted by police forces.

However, the British Crime Survey (BCS) involved quizzing 47,000 people across the UK - including 1,064 people on Teesside - about their experiences and perceptions of crime and takes account of offences not reported to the police.

In recorded crime Teesside also topped the table in violence against the person, at 23 offences per 1,000 people and criminal damage, with 31 offences.

North Yorkshire shared the lowest figure in England at 64 crimes.

But Mr Price said Teesside’s small geographical size compared to other areas made the recorded crime statistics misleading.

He told the Gazette: “We do think per thousand population is a bit of a false way to look at crime.

“We compare ourselves with Manchester. They have concentrations of crime but they have a very large geographical area. But we have a small area so it looks like we are worse.”

Mr Price said the BCS is regarded as a “better reflection of the true extent of household and personal crime”.

The survey suggests that Teesside has one of the lowest figures for crimes against the person in the UK at a rate of 488 crimes per 10,000 population.

The average figure for England and Wales was nearly twice Teesside’s figure at 848.

Mr Price added: “Each police force records its own crime and can influence that crime in terms of how it’s recorded. But when it comes to asking 47,000 people, no police force can influence that - it is what the public think and have experienced.”

Mr Price added that many people felt the force was currently over-recording crime, with incidents such as a school playground fight perhaps better dealt with by other means.

Cleveland Police Authority Chairman Councillor Dave McLuckie said the latest performance figures showed that in the three months to the end of June, the number of recorded crimes on Teesside was slashed by more than 2,800 compared to the same period last year.

He added: “Whether it is violence, robberies, burglaries and theft or motor crime, the figures tell the same story - good news for law-abiding citizens and bad news for criminals.”

Offences 2007-2008
Total offences: 119
Violence against the person: 23
Sexual offences: 1
Robbery: 1
Burglary: 13
Offences against vehicles: 12
Other theft offences: 29
Fraud and forgery: 2
Criminal damage: 31
Drug offences: 4
Other offences: 3

Derek is new Deputy Chief

CLEVELAND Police has a new Deputy Chief Constable - and he is Teesside born and bred.

Derek Bonnard, a Boro fan and season ticket holder at the Riverside Stadium, has been promoted to the post after serving with the force as Assistant Chief Constable for more than four years.

Mr Bonnard, 45, takes over the Deputy Chief Constable’s role from Ron Hogg who retired recently after a long career in policing in the North-east.

After gaining a BSc Honours Degree from University College, London, Mr Bonnard began work in the city as a tax specialist with the major accountancy firm Touche Ross.

In 1986 he transferred to the company’s Leeds office but a year later joined West Yorkshire Police, rising to the rank of Chief Superintendent.

Since joining the Cleveland force in 2004, Mr Bonnard has had responsibility for a wide range of activities - including neighbourhood policing, special constables, volunteers and professional standards.

Middlesbrough based Police Officer in court over GBH charge

Posted by Evening Gazette on October 7, 2008 11:21 AM | Permalink

A CLEVELAND Police officer has appeared in court charged with causing grievous bodily harm.

PC Simon Atkins, 36, who is based in Middlesbrough but is currently suspended, appeared before magistrates at Teesside Magistrates Court yesterday.Monday

He is charged in connection with an incident in which a 32-year-old man was arrested in Middlesbrough on September 30, 2007.

The allegation follows an investigation by the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC).

In a brief hearing, the case was adjourned until October 14 and PC Atkins was granted unconditional bail until that date. No plea was entered.

Jul 28 2008 by Simon Walton, Evening Gazette

CLEVELAND Police Chief Constable Sean Price today defended his force’s record - despite figures showing Teessiders suffer more crimes per person than anywhere else in the UK.

New Home Office figures for recorded crime reveal that for every 1,000 people living on Teesside, there were 119 crimes recorded in 2007-2008 - the highest in the UK. The national average was 91 crimes.

But Mr Price today said the “recorded” crime figures were misleading and an alternative survey had found that Teesside has one of the lowest figures for crimes against the person in the UK.

The two sets of figures were revealed in a Home Office report into crime in England and Wales for 2007-2008.

Recorded crimes are those offences reported to or noted by police forces.

However, the British Crime Survey (BCS) involved quizzing 47,000 people across the UK - including 1,064 people on Teesside - about their experiences and perceptions of crime and takes account of offences not reported to the police.

In recorded crime Teesside also topped the table in violence against the person, at 23 offences per 1,000 people and criminal damage, with 31 offences.

North Yorkshire shared the lowest figure in England at 64 crimes.

But Mr Price said Teesside’s small geographical size compared to other areas made the recorded crime statistics misleading.

He told the Gazette: “We do think per thousand population is a bit of a false way to look at crime.

“We compare ourselves with Manchester. They have concentrations of crime but they have a very large geographical area. But we have a small area so it looks like we are worse.”

Mr Price said the BCS is regarded as a “better reflection of the true extent of household and personal crime”.

The survey suggests that Teesside has one of the lowest figures for crimes against the person in the UK at a rate of 488 crimes per 10,000 population.

The average figure for England and Wales was nearly twice Teesside’s figure at 848.

Mr Price added: “Each police force records its own crime and can influence that crime in terms of how it’s recorded. But when it comes to asking 47,000 people, no police force can influence that - it is what the public think and have experienced.”

Mr Price added that many people felt the force was currently over-recording crime, with incidents such as a school playground fight perhaps better dealt with by other means.

Cleveland Police Authority Chairman Councillor Dave McLuckie said the latest performance figures showed that in the three months to the end of June, the number of recorded crimes on Teesside was slashed by more than 2,800 compared to the same period last year.

He added: “Whether it is violence, robberies, burglaries and theft or motor crime, the figures tell the same story - good news for law-abiding citizens and bad news for criminals.”

Offences 2007-2008
Total offences: 119
Violence against the person: 23
Sexual offences: 1
Robbery: 1
Burglary: 13
Offences against vehicles: 12
Other theft offences: 29
Fraud and forgery: 2
Criminal damage: 31
Drug offences: 4
Other offences: 3

Derek is new Deputy Chief

CLEVELAND Police has a new Deputy Chief Constable - and he is Teesside born and bred.

Derek Bonnard, a Boro fan and season ticket holder at the Riverside Stadium, has been promoted to the post after serving with the force as Assistant Chief Constable for more than four years.

Mr Bonnard, 45, takes over the Deputy Chief Constable’s role from Ron Hogg who retired recently after a long career in policing in the North-east.

After gaining a BSc Honours Degree from University College, London, Mr Bonnard began work in the city as a tax specialist with the major accountancy firm Touche Ross.

In 1986 he transferred to the company’s Leeds office but a year later joined West Yorkshire Police, rising to the rank of Chief Superintendent.

Since joining the Cleveland force in 2004, Mr Bonnard has had responsibility for a wide range of activities - including neighbourhood policing, special constables, volunteers and professional standards.

Those OiNKing Cleveland SOCA cops!

p2pnet news view | Music:- “Read this if you like a good laugh,” says a Reader’s Write to our Online music royalties deal story.

The comment points to an item in The Register, which in turn links to Britain’s Evening Gazette in Teeside which has a write-up of a serious embarrassment centering on the Big 4 record labels and the Cleveland police — the very same department whose officers have been acting as corporate copyright cops funded by local taxpayers.

In Canada, it’s called SOCAN. Its job? To use legal threats to force the likes of dentists and hairdressers to pay exorbitant royalty fees every time they play music for their patients and customers.

In Britain, it’s the Performing Rights Society (PRS) and, says the Gazette Live, “A police force that launched a crackdown against music piracy may itself be breaching music copyright laws, it has emerged.

“But Cleveland Police chiefs today claimed they would rather spend public cash on fighting crime than paying for music rights.”

Last October, “Cleveland Police’s Organised Crime Unit have been working closely with the Music Industry to uncover a massive piracy scam, the first such international operation in the country,” it boasted in an online statement, going on »»»

The organised crime unit, in conjunction with the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI) and the British Phonographic Industry (BPI) have been working closely on the investigation for several months, and today arrested a 24 year old man in connection with Conspiracy to Defraud and Infringement of Copyright Law.

Detective Sergeant Tony Keogh was in charge and according to him, the site, OiNK, “specialized in sharing music and media including pre-release material, this is an infringement on copyright law that in financial terms causes immeasurable loss to the record companies.”

In the statement, “We have been working closely with Interpol and our Dutch colleagues in Amsterdam where the website server is based to ensure that it too was secured at the time of arrest,” he says.

And on behalf of the corporate music industry, “whilst some might view this type of act as a victimless crime there’s no such thing, as the cost of an enterprise such as this will be added to the cost of any legitimate purchases further down the line,” declares chief superintendent Mark Braithwaite, head of crime in Cleveland Police.

Said a p2pnet post on the bust »»»

“Strike, strtike, strike, going in,” says a tense, disembodied voice over a police radio in Britain.

Must be something serious.

And just before that, “The tactics were the same, but this time the target was very different.”

That’s from a reporter who, by an amazing coincidence, happened to find out about the Warner Music, EMI, Vivendi Universal and Sony BMG initiated raid on a 24-year-old man in England just in time to be included.

The man is accused of facilitating the non-existent crime of online file sharing on OiNK and, “The aim was to catch the man while he was logged on to the site,” the reporter continues in a video shot from inside a police car nearing the home of the ’suspect’.

But he’s not alone.

As the videoman follows the police into the man’s house, you see camera flashes popping off.

Next up is local cop enjoying his 15 minutes of fame as the Big 4 milk the situation they created bone dry.

“The police say it is no longer a victimless crime,” the reporter continues, “but they admit few feel sympathy for the multi-billion-dollar record companies being deprived of their profits.”

By another amazing coincidence, the video of the bust turned up on YouTube, as a p2pnet reader pointed out.

British taxpayers will no doubt be delighted to see their hard earned money is being well spent - by Warner Music, EMI, Vivendi Universal and Sony BMG.

Don’t bother to stay tuned.

“Alan Ellis the admin of OiNK, will appear in court along with five users accused of uploading music via the BitTorrent tracker. The six will appear before magistrates to learn if their cases will be sent on to a Crown Court,” says TorrentFreak.

And the apprehension of these wicked, file sharing P2P criminals is largely due to the sterling efforts of the Cleveland cops.

But wait!

“Music licensing authority the Performing Rights Society (PRS) claims many forces have no licence to allow the playing of music in their stations,” said the Gazette Online yesterday, going on:

“A PRS licence is required by law in many cases when music is played outside a domestic home.

“The licence fee - which for a whole police force could run from several hundred to thousands of pounds a year - is applicable to music played on a television, radio or CD player, music played in areas such as staff canteens or social areas, and during a presentation or social event.

“Cleveland Police is among dozens of forces that have not paid up.”

But no worries.

“The legal action is on hold while negotiations take place in a bid to reach a settlement,” the story adds.

After all, what are friends for?

Here’s a video of the bust referred to earlier on.

The Register - BitTorrent crackdown cops fail to pay music copyright fees, September 24, 2008
Evening Gazette - No licence for police, September 24, 2008

BitTorrent crackdown cops fail to pay music copyright fees

Six OiNK accused in court today

By Chris Williams • Get more from this author

Posted in Music and Media, 24th September 2008 11:30 GMT

Cleveland Police, the force that will today bring six people to court for alleged involvement in the OiNK BitTorrent network, does not pay licensing fees to legally play music in its canteens, it has emerged.

Rumours that Cleveland Police was infringing copyright law have been circulating for several months. Yesterday the Middlesborough Gazette reported the force admitted the transgression and said it had not decided whether to pay its Performing Rights Society (PRS) subs.

The PRS collects royalties for artists and record companies from non-domestic performance of recorded copyright music.

A spokeswoman confirmed Cleveland Police's position to El Reg today.

A statement from Cleveland Police Deputy Chief Constable Derek Bonnard said: "We continue to assess the position and are seeking advice to determine if we are required by law to spend a significant amount of public money, which we consider is better committed to crime fighting, in this way." That Quote is priceless

The PRS argues that police forces are required to pay the same as other organisations. It issued a High Court writ against police in Lancashire earlier this year for the same infringment Cleveland has admitted.

PRS said only 11 forces nationwide have paid for the legal right to play copyright music in staff areas. Action against the Lancashire Constabulary has been suspended while the parties attempt to negotiate a settlement.

Depending on where and how it it plays copyright music, Cleveland Police can expect a PRS bill of between a few hundred and a few thousand pounds.

Alan Ellis, the 25-year-old administrator of OiNK, will face Teesside magistrates today on a charge of conspiracy to defraud. Five individuals who were arrested following last year's raids on Ellis and OiNK's servers will also appear, accused of criminal copyright infringement for uploading new trackers to the site.

All of the alleged offences could carry prison sentences. ® Corrupt Cleveland Police Officers.

No licence for Cleveland Police OINK Alan Ellis

I think this amounts to conspiracy to defraud the music industry as
Derek Bonnard clearly conspired with others not to pay. But Cleveland
Police have always been willing to break the law when it suits them.
Opinion by Brian Howes.

Sep 23 2008 by Simon Walton, Evening Gazette

A POLICE force that launched a crackdown against music piracy may itself be breaching music copyright laws, it has emerged.

But Cleveland Police chiefs today claimed they would rather spend public cash on fighting crime than paying for music rights.

Music licensing authority the Performing Rights Society (PRS) claims many forces have no licence to allow the playing of music in their stations.

A PRS licence is required by law in many cases when music is played outside a domestic home.

The licence fee - which for a whole police force could run from several hundred to thousands of pounds a year - is applicable to music played on a television, radio or CD player, music played in areas such as staff canteens or social areas, and during a presentation or social event.

Cleveland Police is among dozens of forces that have not paid up. Last year the force made headlines across the world when it swooped on a Middlesbrough house to crack a suspected international music piracy scam worth hundreds of thousands of pounds.

It is alleged the website, called Oink, involved a private file sharing site with a worldwide membership of 180,000 people. It is said to have allowed the uploading and downloading of pre-release music. The high-profile raid sent shock waves around the internet world.

Now Cleveland Police may itself have fallen foul of music copyright laws.

Other businesses that require a licence if music is played include hairdressers or shops.

The PRS has taken Lancashire Police to the High Court asking for an injunction over the issue. The legal action is on hold while negotiations take place in a bid to reach a settlement.

A PRS spokeswoman said only around 11 police forces in the UK currently hold a licence.

Cleveland Police Deputy Chief Constable Derek Bonnard said: “We continue to assess the position and are seeking advice to determine if we are required by law to spend a significant amount of public money, which we consider is better committed to crime fighting, in this way.”

Six people have been charged in connection with the Oink arrests in October of last year and are due before Teesside Magistrates’ Court.