police officer Archives - The Stray Ferret

Woman admits assaulting police officer in HarrogateHarrogate woman admits pushing police officer on stairsMan fined for punching police officer in MarkingtonRipon man denies impersonating police officer to steal scooter

A Ripon man has denied impersonating a police officer to steal an electric scooter.

Harley Stacey, 18, appeared before Harrogate Magistrates Court this morning (October 27) and spoke only to confirm his name, address and enter a plea.

He denied a charge of impersonating a police constable with intent to deceive in Harrogate on March 18 this year.

Stacey also pleaded not guilty to dishonestly making a false representation as an officer to steal an electric scooter for himself on the same date.

In a statement at the time, North Yorkshire Police said the alleged incident happened in Bilton.

The 18-year-old, of Cedar Close in Ripon, was granted conditional bail ahead of his next hearing.

Magistrates set a trial date of January 16 and 17 at York Magistrates Court.

40 years ago today: PC David Haigh was murdered in Beckwithshaw

North Yorkshire Police officers are paying their respects today to PC David Haigh, who was shot on duty 40 years ago by multiple murderer Barry Prudom.

PC Haigh, 29, was sent to arrest a petty criminal sleeping rough in woodland near Beckwithshaw on the morning of June 17, 1982,

Instead he found Barry Prudom, asleep in his car, and was murdered by a fatal shot on the side of the road.

An error in the police system meant PC Haigh wasn’t aware the petty criminal had been arrested the night before, retired PC Mike Clipston told the Yorkshire Post when he recalled the incident a decade ago:

“The person he had a warrant for, I had taken into the police station the night before. If he had known, David would never have gone.”

PC Haigh is now buried at Stonefall Cemetery.

David Haigh was the the first victim of Prudom, who over 17 days killed a further two people, including another officer Sergeant David Winter. He also attempted to kill dog handler PC Ken Oliver.

The search for Prudom became the biggest manhunt the country had seen at the time.

Barry Prudom, ‘The Phantom in the Forest’

In the summer of 1982, Prudom avoided trial at Leeds Crown Court for violent assault with an iron bar and went on the run. He was found by PC David Haigh sleeping rough in a car near Norwood Edge, Beckwithshaw. He murdered the officer and drove off in a green Citroen.

After abandoning the car, he hitchhiked to Lincolnshire and broke into the home of Freda Jackson on June 20 and stole £4.50. By June 23 he’d made it to Nottinghamshire and shot both George Luckett, 52, and his wife Sylvia, 50, in the head after tying them up. Remarkably Sylvia survived and crawled to her neighbour’s house to raise the alarm.

By this point, Lincolnshire Police, Nottinghamshire Police and North Yorkshire Police had shared information and realised they were all after the same man.

Prudom was stopped on a routine check by dog handler PC Ken Oliver near Dalby Forest, eight miles from Scarborough. He shot PC Oliver in the face and the dog reacted giving the officer time to run for shelter. PC Oliver was hit seven times but none were fatal, the dog was also shot twice and survived.

Within hours a huge manhunt had commenced in the forest involving police marksmen, helicopters and 1,000 police officers on foot.

Prudom’s name was released to the media as the police’s prime suspect and a report came in of a suspicious man seen in Old Malton, North Yorkshire. Police Sergeant David Winter, 31, and PC Mick Wood went to the scene.

Sgt Winter was shot three times and died from his injuries, Prudom managed to escape capture once again.

Police put a cordon around the village of Malton believing Prudom was nearby, they told the media they were focused on Dalby Forest in the hope Prudom would believe it and resurface in the town.

He was found in a shelter he made using his survival training, near Malton’s Tennis Club just 300 yards from the police station that became the temporary headquarters co-ordinating the manhunt.

Police opened fire on the shelter but a port mortem revealed Prudom died from a self-inflicted shot to the head.

Police and army officers amongst Harrogate district residents honoured by Queen

A Boroughbridge police officer and an army officer based at the Army Foundation College in Harrogate are amongst the local residents recognised in the Queen’s Birthday Honours.

In this jubilee year, the Queen has recognised the service of four Harrogate district residents.

Knighthood

Martyn Oliver, chief executive of Outwood Grange Academies Trust, has been knighted for services to education.

The trust sponsors 40 schools in northern England, including Outwood Primary Academy Greystone and Outwood Academy in Ripon.

MBE

Barry Appleton, at the Army Foundation College in Harrogate, has been made an MBE for his military service.

The warrant officer’s role at the college is to take care of the welfare of the 300 military staff and their families.

The college provides basic training to 1,300 under 18s. The honours list describes how he uses his imagination to “engage with and support his community, providing constant oversight and support in excess of what seemed possible”.

He has worked at the college for more than a decade and in that time looked after hundreds of military and civilian families.

Elizabeth (Lizzie) Ellen Hughes, from Harrogate, has been made an MBE for services to sport during covid.

Ms Hughes is currently director of special projects at Sport England after starting her career in grassroots sport as a project manager at North Yorkshire County Sports Partnership.

She has been responsible for delivering the government’s £600million sports survival package to support spectator sports during covid when fans weren’t allowed in venues.

She has given funding to more than 1,200 organisations through this scheme and was also responsible for giving £32.7million worth of covid funding to rugby league teams.

Colin William Rodham, from Knaresborough, has been made an MBE for services to flood risk management in the Yorkshire region.

Mr Rodham currently works as a senior officer in the Environment Agency.

BEM

Sharron Moverley-Homes, from Boroughbridge, has been made an BEM for services to policing.

Ms Moverley-Holmes is a special chief officer in the North Yorkshire Police Special Constabulary. Since joining the police in 1984 she has remained in the North Yorkshire force calling it “the family I could never leave”.

Over the three decades, she said she has worked in a number of departments but being out in the community remains the most rewarding part:

“The bread and butter of policing is being visible and speaking to members of the public. That could be walking the streets or it could be when they need us the most and are at the worst point in their lives.”

Ms Moverley-Holmes manages the special constabulary which is a collection of part-time volunteer officers. She said working with those willing to give up their free time is “truly rewarding” and dedicated her award to their hard work.

She said another passion of her’s is to ensure the force is as open and inclusive as it can be, she said to serve the community we must represent it, adding:

“Policing was very different when I started and so was the world. I hope my legacy is that we are open to everyone and inclusive.”

Talking about receiving the award, she said:

“I was shocked, surprised, I had to hide it away for a few hours and go back and check I hadn’t read it wrong. It’s a huge privilege to be recognised for a job I love.”

This weekend, on June 5, a group of special constables and Ms Moverely-Holmes will be walking 30 miles from York to Tadcaster to mark the 30th anniversary of the death of Special Constable Glenn Goodman who was fatally shot whilst on patrol in Tadcaster.

Queen’s Police Medal for Distinguished Service

Lisa Winward, the Chief Constable of North Yorkshire, has been awarded the Queen’s Police Medal for Distinguished Service.

Ms Winward joined Humberside Police as a regular officer in 1994, before transferring to North Yorkshire in 2008, and took the position of Chief Constable in April 2018.

She is a national ambassador for volunteering, taking the National Police Chief Council lead for Citizens in Policing for a number of years and is national lead for women’s health and the intelligence portfolio.

Ms Winward, said:

“I simply wouldn’t be where I am today without all of the people who have helped me, taught me, inspired and motivated me and worked alongside me in the wonderful team that is policing. It is a privilege to be a public servant and a police officer.”

Harrogate police officer keeps job after running red light and crashing

A Harrogate police officer who was found guilty of dangerous driving after running a red light at 50 miles per hour and crashing has kept her job.

DC Quita Passmore was responding to reports of an officer in distress on May 5 in 2018 when she drove through red lights at the junction of Otley Road and Cold Bath Road.

Patricia Bulmer and Janet Roberton, who were travelling in the car she hit, sustained severe injuries, including broken bones as well as a punctured lung.

Passmore received a 10-month jail term, suspended for two years, and was disqualified from driving for two years at Bradford Crown Court in February.

North Yorkshire Police subsequently held a misconduct hearing, two years after the incident, in May this year.

During the trial, Passmore admitted that her conduct amounted to gross misconduct and the panel agreed. The panel, which had the power to dismiss her, opted instead to issue a final written warning.

Following the outcome, the Stray Ferret has written several times to both the Crown Prosecution Service and North Yorkshire Police to ask when CCTV from the night of the crash, which was shown in court, would be released.

The CPS did not respond numerous times before passing the enquiry onto North Yorkshire Police. North Yorkshire Police told us it was in fact the responsibility of the CPS.

We were then told by both organisations this week that the video was “no longer contemporaneous” and would therefore not be released.

Last week North Yorkshire Police released a compilation of video footage showing what it described as “some of the worst driving” in the county by members of the public as part of a new “fatal five” campaign focussing on the most common causes of fatalities.

A spokesperson for North Yorkshire Police said:

“The officer faced the allegation that she had breached the standards of professional behaviour Duties and Responsibilities and Discreditable Conduct.

“The officer admitted that their conduct amounted to gross misconduct and the panel concluded the same. The outcome was a final written warning.”

Police officer guilty of dangerous driving over Harrogate crash

A police officer who drove through a red light in Harrogate at 50 miles per hour and then crashed into a car carrying two elderly women has been found guilty of dangerous driving.

DC Quita Passmore, 38, was driving an undercover police vehicle when she went through the red light at the junction of Otley Road and Cold Bath Road.

She was responding to reports of an officer in distress at 10pm on May 5, 2018 when the incident occurred.

Bradford Crown Court heard how Patricia Bulmer and Janet Roberton sustained severe injuries, including broken bones and a punctured lung.

The jury of 12 people retired for deliberations at about 1pm today and returned with a guilty verdict on two counts of dangerous driving at about 4.30pm.

DC Passmore, who pleaded not guilty, said in a statement that was read out during the trial:

“I was aware that I needed to give way for the red light. But I thought it was unlikely that anything would emerge as my colleague had passed through seconds before.

“As I went through the junction a red car emerged. My evasive action was not enough to avoid the collision.

“I am glad to hear that the two other people involved are making a recovery. I am very sorry this happened, it was never my intention.”

Patricia Bulmer, who was driving the vehicle that was hit, told police in hospital:

“We had spent the day at a friend’s house and left around 10pm. I had driven up Cold Bath Road and turned onto the junction with Otley Road.

“Then there was an almighty smash and bang. The airbag flew into me. My friend was then making moaning noises at the side of me.”

Janet Roberton, who was a passenger, told police:

“I heard a loud siren-type noise and saw lights to the right of the car. I just remember one of us shouting ‘oh my god, oh my god’.

“Then there was a loud bang, it was the most awful noise I have ever heard. My first thought was the we were going to die, it felt terrible.”

Judge Burn adjourned the court until tomorrow morning, when he will sentence DC Passmore for dangerous driving.

Man jailed for breaking police officer’s leg and threatening ex-partner

A Harrogate man has been jailed for breaking a police officer’s leg and terrorising his ex-partner.

Shane Povey, 38, started berating officers when he turned up at an incident in Boroughbridge.

As officers were breaking up a fight between two men, Povey – who knew one of the warring parties – turned up in a friend’s car, got out and started shouting and swearing at police, York Crown Court heard yesterday.

Prosecutor Stephen Littlewood said:

“Mr Povey was remonstrating with police, asking who had reported the incident.”

Police told him to leave the scene, whereupon Povey, who was drunk, walked back to the vehicle, hurling a volley of abuse as he did so.

When police tried to arrest him, Povey grabbed two of the officers by the arm and shoved them away. One of the officers lost his balance, fell to the ground and felt his ankle crack.

Povey was restrained by other officers using pepper spray. The injured officer, who was lying “in agony” on the ground, suffered a broken ankle, fractures to his shin bone and ligament damage.

He needed two operations for his broken leg and was left with severe mobility problems and relying on crutches.

The incident had left deep psychological scars and the officer suffered lost earnings due to absence from work and restricted duties thereafter. He had been receiving ongoing orthopaedic treatment and was still unable to run.

Making threats

Povey, of Dene Park, Harrogate, was released on bail following the incident on August 1, 2019, but on January 17 last year he decided to seek out his ex-partner.

The victim, a mother-of-one who was named in court, had ended the relationship a few weeks before, but Povey bombarded her “throughout the day” with unanswered phone calls and a flurry of text messages “demanding money from her”.

In the evening, he turned up at her home in Boroughbridge and started banging at her door and windows, shouting dire threats and threatening to “do her car in”.

The victim – who had ended the relationship with Povey “because of concerns over his behaviour and the way he was treating her” – was in the living room “shaking” and refused to answer the door. She called police but then heard a “smash” and the car alarm going off.

Povey eventually left, but when she went outside, she found that all four tyres on her three-day-old Audi A1, a special mobility vehicle, had been slashed and were completely flat. Her front door had also been damaged.

The victim found a kitchen knife on the ground near her vehicle. Subsequent police analysis showed that the knife bore Povey’s DNA.

He was charged with criminal damage, putting his partner in fear of violence, causing serious injury to the officer, albeit without intent, and possessing a knife.

Previous convictions

After his initial denials, Povey ultimately admitted three counts including the attack on the officer and possessing a knife. One other charge was allowed to lie on file.

The court heard that Povey had six previous convictions, mainly for drug offences including production of a Class B drug.

Ian Cook, for Povey, said his client had only taken the knife to the scene to slash the tyres and not to use against the victim. He said his life had been marred by drug and alcohol abuse which had exacerbated mental health issues.

Povey had been “greatly distressed” following the break-up of his relationship with the victim, but he had never been violent to her nor any other women previously, added Mr Cook.

Judge Simon Hickey said although he recognised that Povey wasn’t habitually violent and was remorseful for his actions, he had no option but to send him straight to prison due to the seriousness of the offences against his ex-partner and the attack on the police officer which had had an “extreme” effect upon him.

The judge also noted the “significant damage” caused to the woman’s Audi and the fact she was “terrified” during the incident.

Povey was given a two-and-a-half year jail sentence but will only serve a tiny fraction of that because of the time he had already spent on remand in Hull Prison. He was also slapped with a 10-year restraining order banning him from contacting his ex-partner or entering the road where she lives.

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Man avoids jail for threatening ex-girlfriend and breaking policeman’s nose

A man who broke a policeman’s nose and cheekbone in a “disgraceful” attack at his home in Harrogate has narrowly avoided jail.

Joel Adam Rushton, 37, was resisting arrest when he struck one of the officers repeatedly, York Crown Court heard.

The officer received specialist hospital treatment for facial fractures and made a full physical recovery, but still suffered from the physical and mental effects of the incident on January 3, said prosecutor James Howard.

The policeman, who was named in court, had gone to Rushton’s address to arrest him for his behaviour towards his ex-partner, added Mr Howard. Six months after they broke up, she received a barrage of threatening phone calls from Rushton, who told her:

“I’m going to smash your head in; I’m going to kill you. I’m going to find you. I’m going to your mum’s to put my foot through the door. I want you dead.”

She hung up but he called back repeatedly, whereupon she called the police. Mr Howard added:

“She received a call from her mother who said that (Rushton) had been to (her) property and had been kicking the door and asking where (the victim) was.”

Turned violent

The victim – whose fraught relationship with Rushton ended in June last year – was so frightened of what he might do to her that she sought refuge at Harrogate Police Station.

When police turned up at Rushton’s home, he refused to be put in handcuffs and turned so violent that officers had to use pepper spray in an attempt to subdue him, amid screams from Rushton’s “highly agitated” new girlfriend, who was also sprayed accidentally.

Rushton “made a beeline” for one of the officers, whom he punched repeatedly in the face. The scuffle spilled out onto the street where Rushton grabbed one of the officer’s batons.

The injured officer had an X-ray six days later which showed he had fractures to his nose and cheekbone. He also suffered nasal bleeding.

Rushton, of Grove Park Lane, Harrogate, appeared for sentence on Friday after pleading guilty to assaulting the officer occasioning actual bodily harm and making threatening phone calls to his ex-partner – an offence under the Malicious Communications Act.

In a victim impact statement, Rushton’s ex-girlfriend said she had been left feeling “anxious and distressed” which had resulted in her leaving the job she loved.

The officer who was seriously injured at Rushton’s home said he had suffered from depression, sleep problems and physical pain since the attack in January. He was put on restricted duties for weeks following the attack and was afraid to leave his house. Mr Howard said:

“He says the entire ordeal has left him (and his family) distressed and upset.”

Previous convictions

The court heard that Rushton, a father of four, had two previous convictions for three offences including public disorder.

Defence barrister Keith Allen said that Rushton, who worked as a fireplace installer, “lost emotional control” on the day in question while in a “primal state” born of “extreme anger”. He had behaved “completely out of character” when the officers came to arrest him and had since received cognitive therapy from a mental health nurse.

Recorder Margia Mostafa branded Rushton’s behaviour towards his ex-partner “disgraceful”, particularly his threats to kill her. She added:

“She must have believed what you were saying because she had to go to Harrogate Police Station as a place of safety.”

She noted, however, the “glowing” character references including one from Rushton’s employer, which “could not be further from the man that assaulted police and behaved in a dreadful fashion towards his former partner”, and others which described him as a “completely different man: a dedicated, loving father”.

Rushton’s 22-month jail sentence was suspended for two years but Ms Mostafa said he had “come close” to going straight to prison “because assaults against police officers are not acceptable”.

Rushton was also given a 12-month restraining order banning him from contacting or approaching his ex-partner. He was also placed on a nine-month, nightly curfew and ordered to carry out 150 hours’ unpaid work.

In addition, Rushton was ordered to complete a 25-day rehabilitation programme and pay £1,500 compensation to the injured police officer.