Liverpool's courts have already handled hundreds of cases so far this year.
From trials and sentencings to other hearings, dozens of defendants have moved through the city's magistrates' and crown courts. While many criminals have been jailed already this year, others have been given another chance.
Judges take into account a variety of factors when sentencing defendants. These can relate to the offence that they have committed or to the individual circumstances of each defendant.
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A lack of previous convictions, clear remorse and the potential detrimental effect of a jail term on those close to defendants can all be factors in causing a judge to suspend a sentence. But while defendants may keep their liberty they are often subjected to strict measures which mean that, while they don't have to go to jail, they can't just do as they please.
Here are the people handed another chance by judges in Merseyside so far this year.
Ruth Fort
A thieving care worker who blew her stolen money on a luxury Mexico holiday walked free from court after another court appearance at the start of the year. Ruth Fort, who stole £7,220 from a wheelchair-bound woman and splashed out on a luxury trip, was given another chance by a judge last year.
The 37-year-old received a 16 month jail term suspended for 18 months with conditions including attending drug rehabilitation sessions. Liverpool Crown Court was told in January that she has now breached the suspended jail sentence by twice not attending drug rehabilitation sessions and had also missed a meeting with her probation officer.
However, Judge Brian Cummings, QC, said he took into account the impact an immediate sentence would have on her daughter, as well as her multiple health problems, and spared her prison. He said he would give her one last chance and did not activate the suspended sentence.
Arron Croston and June Pickup
A man who neglected his dog so badly that a vet had to put her down her after finding maggots crawling out of her infected ear avoided jail. Vets decided to put down Aaron Croston’s Neapolitan Mastiff, Shy, after she was taken to a surgery in Prenton last year unable to stand on her own and in severe pain.
Croston said he loved Shy "like a daughter" but he and girlfriend June Pickup allowed her condition to deteriorate drastically during the summer of last year. An autopsy later found 13-year-old Shy had a number of untreated conditions, including advanced cancer and deep pressure sores from being left on a hard surface for lengthy periods.
Vets at the University of Liverpool said that she was likely suffering for weeks and that anyone would have been able to tell she needed medical help - yet she received it too late. Both Pickup and Croston were given decade-long bans on owning animals and handed 12 weeks in prison, suspended for 18 months.
Drew Matthews
A man who threatened to stab a police officer with a serrated knife while he was drunk and high on cocaine walked free from court. Drew Matthews waved the blade at police on Market Square in Kirkby last month after they chased him through the town centre.
The court heard Matthews pulled out the blade and yelled "get away or I will stab you” before being pepper sprayed. However, despite his crime, a judge said he could be rehabilitated in the community.
Matthews, of Beech Close, Kirkby, was sentenced to nine months in prison, suspended for 18 months. He must also complete rehabilitation and community requirements and pay a statutory surcharge of £156.
Charles George and Jack Nolan
Two teenagers involved in a street brawl that saw one of them stab two men were spared jail. Charles George, 18, and Jack Nolan, 19, went to a home in Bootle to confront another youth, Liam Laird, on May 10 last year.
But he wasn't there and the two yobs instead fought with his family, including his grandad and uncle. Stuart Laird, 63, was knifed in the back, while Anthony Laird, 45, was stabbed in the arm, in shocking scenes captured on CCTV.
But prosecutors said they couldn't say which teenager stabbed the victims, meaning George and Nolan both walked free from court, after admitting affray. George was sentenced to 16 months' detention, suspended for two years, with 200 hours of unpaid work and a 10-day Rehabilitation Activity Requirement.
Nolan was handed 20 months' detention, suspended for two years, with 120 hours of unpaid work, a "Thinking Skills Programme", and a 25-day Rehabilitation Activity Requirement.
Neil Getty and Nicola Fargin
A burglar was allowed to walk free but his location will be tracked via a Global Positioning System (GPS) tag in a first for one of the region’s judges. Neil Getty, 54, of Linacre Road, Litherland, was made subject to a 'trail monitoring order' as part of a suspended sentence after he pleaded guilty to burglary.
The three-month requirement was part of a package of measures intended to steer Getty clear of trouble by enabling probation officers to track his movements. Getty and codefendant Nicola Fargin, 42, of Bell House Road, Widnes, both stood to be sentenced for burglary in relation to the theft of a TV and gaming computer from a flat on Frederick Street, Widnes, on June 26.
Fargin was sentenced to 12 months in prison but could leave because she had already served that time on remand. Getty was sentenced to 15 months imprisonment, suspended for two years.
Richard Moriarty
A man who pretended to be a police officer and used blue lights to pull over another driver walked free back in January. Richard Moriarty turned on the lights after seeing another vehicle driving in a way he didn’t like on the Rainhill Bypass in November last year.
He was found out after the driver he stopped became suspicious and contacted the police themselves. Liverpool Crown Court heard Moriarty took the bizarre action after seeing the car drive in a way that he thought was unacceptable but that he now accepted what he did was wrong.
Moriarty, of Bosworth Road, was handed two consecutive 10 week jail terms, suspended for a year. He was banned from driving for a year, must undertake rehabilitation activities and pay costs and the statutory surcharge.
John Redmond
A married man told a 13-year-old girl he was grooming that she needed to "be careful on the internet because there were paedophiles about on there". Unknown to John Redmond, 50, the girl was actually a decoy whose profile was put online by a paedophile hunting group.
Liverpool Crown Court heard “some grooming took place” by Redmond, who was later snared by the group and admitted attempting to incite a girl to engage in sexual activity and attempted sexual communication with a child. Judge Stuart Driver, QC, sentenced him to two years imprisonment suspended for 18 months and ordered him to carry out 20 days rehabilitation activities. He ordered him to sign the Sex Offenders Register for ten years and imposed a Sexual Harm Prevention Order for the same length of time.
Jonathon Nolan
A man burgled his ex-boyfriend, sent him a cryptic song reference and then shared explicit videos of the pair with his victim’s mum and brother Jonathon Nolan broke into the home where his former lover was staying in December 2020, stealing clothes and leaving a child witness terrified.
He then messaged his victim with a reference to a vinyl record that may have been stolen in the burglary, before sending intimate footage of the pair to family members. Yet Nolan, who had five previous convictions, was spared jail despite admitting burglary and sending revenge porn after a judge ruled he had also been the victim of domestic abuse during the relationship.
Nolan was handed an 11 month prison term, suspended for two years, and ordered to complete 15 days of rehabilitation activity and 120 hours of unpaid work. He was also made the subject of a curfew and a restraining order.
Leslie Lee
A man whose 17-year-old marriage was "falling apart" began "a campaign of unpleasantness" against his estranged wife. HGV driver Leslie Lee, 51, appeared at Liverpool Crown Court for sentencing after being found guilty of controlling and coercive behaviour in an intimate or family relationship.
The court heard that Lee repeatedly or continuously engaged in behaviour which was controlling or coercive - namely humiliation, threats, and intimidation - against his wife Julie at the former marital home. The court heard the behaviour carried on over a five month period and Lee, who had no previous convictions, was remorseful.
A judge sentenced him to eight months in jail, suspended for two years. He was also given a rehabilitation activity requirement, and ordered to pay a fine of £2,000.
Lee Bryenton
An assistant store manager at Savers stole £2,930 from the business' safe to pay off his gambling debts. Lee Bryenton, 39, was assistant manager at the Savers store in South Road, Waterloo , when he stole £2,930 from the business' safe.
Liverpool Magistrates’ Court heard how Bryenton had stolen cash from the business but later called his boss to admit his behaviour and said he had had a breakdown. A judge handed Bryenton, who admitted committing theft by employee, an 18 month community order with 30 days rehabilitation activities and 150 hours unpaid work. He ordered him to pay £1,100 compensation plus £180 costs.
Dominykas Donela
A drunk man on an EasyJet flight threw a bottle and refused to wear a mask while onboard. Dominykas Donela was flying back from Rhodes, Greece with his family when he was considered so drunk he was refused alcohol.
Nastassia McAdam, prosecuting told Liverpool Magistrates Court on Tuesday, February 1, how the 24-year-old refused to wear a mask, became abusive and threw a bottle towards a crew member. Donela, of Vanbrugh Crescent, Anfield, pleaded guilty to being drunk on an aircraft. He was fined £480 and ordered to pay a total of £133 of costs at the rate of £20 a month.
Philip Street
Philip Street, 41, sent sexually explicit messages to a person he believed was a 13-year-old child. He asked the supposed girl whether she would make him wear a condom if they were to have sex.
The pervert, of Bedford Avenue, Rock Ferry , was actually talking to an undercover police officer. But a judge said his "very significant disability" substantially reduced his responsibility for the crime.
Street admitted attempting to engage in sexual communications with a child and was sentenced to a two-year community order, with a 15-day Rehabilitation Activity Requirement and a sex offender treatment programme.
Nathan Critchlow
A paedophile who downloaded child rape videos behind his mum's back walked free from court back in February. Nathan Critchlow amassed a "foul, obscene and revolting" collection of 1,529 child sex abuse images which were found by police during a raid on his home in September 2020.
The 25-year-old - who said he was snorting cocaine and drinking heavily at the time - now says he's "cured" of his paedophilia. But a judge said he didn't accept this claim and the pervert needed to complete a sex offender treatment programme to reduce the risk he poses to children.
Recorder Ian Harris gave Critchlow 15 months in jail, suspended for two years, with a sex offender treatment programme, 25-day Rehabilitation Activity Requirement and 160 hours of unpaid work.
Ryan Cham
A teen found with images of girls aged three or four being sexually abused had been downloading child abuse pictures since he was 13. Ryan Cham was found with 878 indecent images of children when police raided his parents’ home in Noctorum and seized electronic devices from him last year.
Carmel Wilde, prosecuting, said Cham later told police his offending had mainly escalated during the pandemic when he was isolated and spent far more time online. Police eventually raided his family’s home in February last year after tracing his details to an indecent image uploaded to the Discord app.
The court heard Cham was remorseful and probation officers assessed that he had a good chance of rehabilitation. Cham, of Saughall, was made the subject of a community order for 30 months. That order will see him take part in an intensive course aimed at stopping reoffending among those convicted of a sexual offence. He must undertake 35 rehabilitation days and pay a £500 fine.
Deanna Franklin
An Everton supporter shouted racist abuse at a Burnley player during a match between the two sides at Goodison Park. Deanna Franklin admitted using the racist language towards Dwight McNeil on September 13 last year but denied being racist at an appearance at Sefton Magistrates’ Court this afternoon.
The 43-year-old was reported after another fan, also at the match with his young son, saw her shout the vile abuse, believing it to be directed towards “the Burnley No.11 player”, Dwight McNeil. Franklin, of Bath Street North, Southport, was handed a football banning order for three years, blocking her from attending any regulated matches.
Steven Dumphy
A thug knocked a man unconscious after previously making death threats. Steven Dumphy, 40, from St Helens went to the home of his ex-partner’s sister and was shouting and swearing at her in an agitated state.
Liverpool Crown Court heard how he called her a “f*****g rat” and spat in her face before going back to the street just as her boyfriend, Thomas Wareing got out of his car. He then knocked Mr Wareing unconscious before walking off down the street.
He was later arrested and pleaded guilty to wounding and sending malicious communications, linked to messages he sent to his ex partner. A judge sentenced him to seven months imprisonment suspended for 18 months and ordered him to carry out 25 rehabilitation activities and 120 hours unpaid work.
Dumphy was also ordered to pay £1,200 prosecuting costs and the judge imposed a five year restraining order to keep away from Mr Wareing.
Scott Buckley
A man admitted he 'had a spliff' before crashing a stolen car in a speeding police chase. Scott Buckley, 29, was driving a Mitsubishi, which was reported stolen 16 days prior, when police spotted the number plate had been altered with black tape.
Officers then attempted to stop the car with their emergency lights as Buckley drove it along Stamford Road, Newton-le-Willows. He refused to stop and a lengthy police chase began as he sped through St Helens exceeding the 30 mph speed limit, at times reaching 70 mph.
Buckley, of Oak Avenue, pleaded guilty to dangerous driving and aggravated vehicle taking but was spared jail and handed a 14 month jail sentence suspended for 18 months. A judge also ordered him to carry out 150 hours unpaid work and 25 days rehabilitation activities.
Craig Meddings
A Morrisons security guard stole £2,700 of cigarettes after hiding them in his podium at the front of the store. Craig Meddings has nine previous convictions for 13 offences, including six thefts between 2006 and 2017.
But he got a job as a security guard at Morrisons in Speke , where he helped himself to 5,000 cigarettes. He pleaded guilty to five counts of theft by employee.
The judge handed Meddings 12 months in jail, suspended for two years, with a 12-day Rehabilitation Activity Requirement and 180 hours of unpaid work. He ordered him to pay £2,700 back to Morrisons in compensation, plus £425 court costs, and warned him if he ignored these orders it was "at your peril".
Jeffrey Kasseon
A man who racially abused a police officer was told by a judge he should meet his victim. The constable and a colleague had been called to a disturbance in Aigburth after the defendant himself had allegedly been subjected to racial abuse.
Drunken Jeffrey Kasseon called him “a f****** black b******” and also called his colleague “a white f****** b******.” Judge David Swinnerton handed 63-year-old Kasseon a 12 month community order, ordered him to carry out 20 days rehabilitation activities and imposed a four month curfew between 8pm and 8am. He also told him to meet the officer involved after he requested to discuss the incident with Kasseon.
Benjamin Holland
A man battered his best friend in a "frenzied” attack after learning he was dating his ex. The victim, Liam Traynor, had opened his front door to Benjamin Holland thinking they were going out to breakfast but was instead viciously assaulted in October last year.
He was repeatedly punched in the face and Holland kicked him in the ribs while he was lying curled up in a ball. He then walked off leaving his victim covered in blood and with agonising facial fractures.
A judge told Holland he should “grow up” and that his ex's love life was none of his business. Holland, 26, a self-employed welder, of Gorsefield Road, Oxton, pleaded guilty to inflicting grievous bodily harm.
Recorder Pierpoint sentenced him to two years imprisonment suspended for two years and ordered him to carry out 250 hours unpaid work and 10 days rehabilitation activities.
Abdul Hassan
An Arsenal fan has been banned from attending football matches after “getting excited” and throwing a bottle at the pitch at Anfield. Abdul Hassan was watching Arsenal play Liverpool in the first leg of the Carabao Cup semi-final between the two teams on January 13 this year.
Liverpool drew that match but went on to win the second leg 2-0. That set up a final against Chelsea last weekend, with the Reds winning 11-10 on penalties. Liverpool Magistrates’ Court heard last month that Hassan, from Stratford in London, threw an empty plastic bottle at the pitch in what his counsel described as a “stupid” and “impulsive” episode.
Hassan was handed a football banning order and told to pay prosecution costs.
Liam Wharton
A drunk man who knocked a woman out cold and broke her nephew’s finger by biting it walked free after she pleaded with a judge not to deprive his kids of their dad. Liam Wharton launched a sickening attack on Debbie Peers after she tried to defuse an argument at a party on September 8, 2019.
The 31-year-old also bit Ryan Peers, his long term friend and Mrs Peers’ nephew, so hard on the finger, he broke it. The court heard Wharton was extremely drunk and aggravated shortly before the incident, having had an argument with another guest earlier in the evening.
Wharton, of Alt Side Court, Liverpool, was sentenced to 21 months in prison, suspended for two years. Judge Goldstone ordered him to pay £10,000 in compensation to Ms Peers and £1,500 to Ryan Peers.
He will also be required to undertake 30 rehabilitation days and pay the victim surcharge as well as prosecution costs.
Mark Murphy
A man who said he was scared of drug dealers after getting shot grew a £66,000 cannabis farm to avoid having to buy it on the streets. Mark Murphy, of Stonehill Street in Anfield, appeared before Liverpool Crown Court after pleading guilty to producing cannabis and possessing the drug with intent to supply
A judge told Murphy that “ordinarily” such an offence would mean an immediate jail sentence. But after hearing that the 28-year old wants help to cure his cannabis addiction the judge suspended a 16-month prison sentence for 18 months.
Judge Andrew Menary QC, the Recorder of Liverpool, also ordered him to attend a six month drug rehabilitation course and 20 days rehabilitation activities. He additionally imposed a electronically monitored curfew on him for three months between 8-6am.
Todd Baston
A fraudster lied about being an Everton FC star to con a city garage out of an expensive Mini Cooper Sport. Todd Jordan Baston created an elaborate back story claiming to be a Premiership footballer in the under 23 team at Aston Villa but on loan at Goodison Park .
Baston, 24, had been due to face trial at Liverpool Crown Court next month but changed his plea to guilty to fraud by false representation. A separate charge of stealing the car, which he had also denied, was dropped and left to lie on the file.
The court heard Baston was struggling with cannabis and alcohol abuse at the time off the offence, when he convinced a car dealership to let him test drive the car but then never returned it. A judge sentenced him to two years imprisonment but suspended it for 18 months and ordered him to carry out 200 hours' unpaid work.
Gary Dutton
Two burglars who drunkenly ransacked a British Heart Foundation shop said they didn’t know they were stealing from a charity. Gary Dutton and Jack Roberts burgled the shop on West Derby Road as well as a phone repair shop in Old Swan last year.
Yet dad-of-three Dutton walked free today after a judge said sending him to jail would make his children homeless. Dutton, of Darmond Road, Kirkby, was jailed for 16 months, suspended for two years. Roberts was jailed for two years and three months.
Ryan Cunningham
A drug dealer caught with pepper spray said he bought it from the shopping website Wish to display at home. Ryan Cunningham was arrested when police stopped his dad's car and found him with a rucksack full of cannabis.
Officers then searched his home and found more drugs and a capsaicin canister - commonly called pepper spray. But the 26-year-old was today spared jail after a judge accepted he had bought the illegal weapon to display in a glass cabinet and not to protect his drug supply.
A judge handed Cunningham an eight-month prison sentence, suspended for two years, with a 15-day Rehabilitation Activity Requirement and 150 hours of unpaid work.
Rhiannon Sweeney
A couple waited outside a nightclub for two women and then battered them on the street - but only one went to jail. Courtney Smith and Rhiannon Sweeney attacked Jorden Pilkington and Jeanette Wills outside Empire bar in St Helens on Saturday, October 26, 2019.
Liverpool Crown Court heard the pair targeted their victims after an argument inside the club and waited outside to attack them. Smith had denied wounding Ms Wills and Sweeney had denied assaulting Ms Pilkington but both were found guilty by a jury.
Smith, 21, targeted Ms Wills, punching her in the head multiple times and leaving her with a perforated eardrum. Sweeney, also 21, punched Ms Pilkington at the same time before security staff saw the incident and intervened.
Sweeney, of Princess Drive, Yew Tree, was handed a nine-month jail term, suspended for two years. Smith, of Elmsfield Close, Thatto Heath, St Helens, was jailed for 12 months.
Nicola Brimage
A carer who blew an elderly woman's savings on Amazon and eBay shopping sprees was spared jail. Nicola Brimage targeted a vulnerable 78-year-old who has Parkinson's disease and is housebound.
The 32-year-old helped herself to nearly £6,000 - leaving her victim in her overdraft and feeling "devastated". But after claiming she "couldn't stop" and "just kept on spending", Brimage walked free from court.
The court heard although it was against the rules of the care agency she worked for, Brimage started helping her victim with shopping, who provided her cash card and PIN, and trusted her to visit ATMs and withdraw cash. The theft, between February 2021 and July 2021, was exposed when NatWest contacted the woman to say she had gone into her overdraft.
The judge handed her a 12-month prison sentence, suspended for 18 months, with a 15-day Rehabilitation Activity Requirement and 80 hours of unpaid work.
Phillip Hollis
A driver who was sending Whatsapp messages moments before he crashed his speeding Merseyrail train has avoided jail. Phillip Hollis sent a friend a message moments before realising his Kirkby-bound service was travelling at almost three times the speed limit of the entrance to the station on March 13 last year.
He hit the emergency brake shortly before reaching the platform but the train crashed through barriers at the station with 12 passengers and a guard on board. He admitted endangering the safety of people travelling on by a railway and was handed a 12 month jail term, suspended for two years. He must also follow a curfew between 7pm and 7am for three months and complete 180 hours of unpaid work.
David Young
A bouncer at a city centre club put a partygoer in a headlock and broke his jaw after he was hit by a dropped glowstick. David Young was on shift at Modo in Concert Square on November 16, 2019, when he launched the brutal assault on Ratislav Marton.
Mr Marton had been “causing no trouble” at the bar on a busy Saturday night when Young “lost control of himself” and battered the partygoer before dragging him out. Despite this, Young walked free from Liverpool Crown Court today after a ruling that his health issues and the amount of time the case had remained in the legal system meant his jail term should be suspended.
Young, of Onslow Road, was sentenced to nine months in prison, suspended for 18 months. He also faces a six month curfew and must take part in rehabilitation activities.
Michael Cheeseman
A thug used his dad’s BMW to cause bedlam on the M53 then waved a hammer at an off duty police officer on the hard shoulder. Michael Cheeseman tailgated the officer’s car after trying unsuccessfully to move past it then followed him across multiple lanes of the motorway, stopping in front of him and running at him holding the hammer.
The 21-year-old said the “red mist” caused him to act erratically and out of character during the incident but brazenly told police that the officer was the aggressor. A judge told him that was a lie after dashcam footage from the officer’s car proved the police’s version of events.
However, he said Cheeseman, who has no previous convictions, had a realistic prospect of rehabilitation and agreed to suspend his six month jail term.
Clair Woodward
A mum-of-three cruelly betrayed an elderly neighbour who had treated her like "family". Clair Woodward "borrowed" thousands of pounds from the vulnerable pensioner, who had memory problems.
The single mum even sent her children round to ask for money, before she then started stealing from the victim. But the 35-year-old walked free from Liverpool Crown Court after she was spared jail because of her children.
The court heard Woodward stole hundreds but was handed four months in prison, suspended for 12 months, with a 15-day Rehabilitation Activity Requirement, and an eight-week home curfew, from 9pm to 6am daily.
Simon Marshall
A "greedy" couple ran a children's football club into the ground by blowing nearly £100,000 of its money. Michelle and Simon Marshall were the directors of Phoenix Football Youth Club in Southport and stole money intended to fund new facilities at its ground.
While building work stalled and players went without proper equipment, the Marshalls and their three children holidayed in the USA, France and Italy - enjoying meals out, paintballing and boating trips. Liverpool Crown Court was told Mrs Marshall, 42, was chairwoman and treasurer, while her 47-year-old husband was the secretary and welfare officer of the club, then based in Russell Road.
Mrs Marshall admitted two counts of fraud, relating to £99,453 in total, and Mr Marshall admitted one count of fraud, relating to £12,686. The judge said Mr Marshall - the owner of a car valeting business - accepted he lived beyond his means and the dad said if he was jailed, they would likely lose their family home.
Judge Woodhall handed him 15 months in prison, suspended for 18 months, and told him to complete a 30-day Rehabilitation Requirement and 250 hours of unpaid work. Mrs Marshall was jailed for two and half years due to the persistent nature of her offending.
Mark Smith AKA Mark Bocker
A former Merseyside headteacher downloaded pictures of kids as young as eight being sexually abused. Mark Smith, also known as Mark Bocker, worked in education for more than three decades, including in Knowsley, but was convicted of possession of indecent images earlier this year.
While using his birth surname of Bocker, Smith, now of Formby , worked in schools across the North West. At his sentencing hearing, Liverpool Crown Court was told the 61-year-old changed his name very recently but the judge in the case confirmed the surname Bocker was the one he has used for the vast majority of his life.
Peter Hussey, prosecuting, said police were alerted in 2020 to indecent images being downloaded to a device and this was later traced to Smith, who was arrested and admitted possession of indecent images in February. He was handed a six month jail term, suspended for 18 months.
Gary Healey
A child sex offender broke a court order for an eighth time by flying to Portugal with his fiancée. Gary Healey flew off to Faro with his fiancée without notifying police he had obtained a passport or he was leaving the country. Daniel Bramhall, prosecuting, told Liverpool Crown Court how the Home Office contacted police on October 22 last year about Healey having left the country.
Five days later, Healey’s sex offender manager spoke to him on the phone. Healey, 46, had been placed on the sex offenders' register for seven years in 2017 after being convicted of inciting a girl under 16 to engage in sexual activity, which earned him a suspended prison sentence.
Healey confirmed he had obtained a passport on December 8, 2020 and failed to notify police about it. He voluntarily attended Birkenhead police station and admitted to the breach and also said he failed to notify the force about going abroad. Healey, of Osborne Road, Birkenhead , pleaded guilty to two offences of breaching the SOR order but narrowly escaped being sent straight to jail after a judge heard how he has recently been engaging with support workers. Judge Gary Woodhall imposed a six month prison sentence suspended for 15 months and ordered him to carry out 15 days rehabilitation activities.
Gemma Morris
A mum dropped her son’s drugs safe in the boot of her car and pulled off her drive as police closed in on her home. Gemma Morris was tipped off Joel Lawler had been stopped by officers while dealing drugs from his Mercedes.
But police reached their home in time to stop her as she was about to drive away with his stash. She admitted perverting the course of justice after a judge ruled her actions did not impede the police investigation into her son after she admitted to officers what she had done as soon as they stopped her.
Morris was handed a 10 month sentence, suspended for 18 months, 100 hours of unpaid work and placed on a three month curfew.
Andrew McCoosh
A cocaine addict secretly stole almost £3,000 of his nan's savings while running shopping errands for her. Andrew McCoosh, 24, made various withdrawals his nan's Barclay's bank account without her knowledge after she gave him her card and pin number so he could go on shopping errands for her. Liverpool Crown Court heard that on August 11 last year, she noticed money was gone from her account which she had not withdrawn.
She investigated and found a further eight transactions which she had not made and she notified the bank, said Holly Menary, prosecuting. Menary said: "She had given the defendant access to her card and pin so he could buy groceries and occasionally she would give him the odd £20. But her permission did not extend to withdrawing large amounts of money."
McCoosh admitted taking the money and said he owed his drug dealer £2,000. The judge, Recorder Paul Taylor sentenced him to five months imprisonment suspended for 12 months and imposed a six month drug rehabilitation requirement.
Mohammed Moosbally
A former IT worker at Alder Hey hospital stole 60 iPads destined for sick children and their families. Mohammed Moosbally helped himself to nearly £29,000 of the hospital's equipment in a "despicable" series of burglaries .
The dad-of-two flogged the devices then spent the cash on cocaine and accommodation when sleeping rough. The court heard Moosbally had significant mental health issues, including PTSD linked to Hillsborough, and was deeply remorseful of stealing the iPads and later selling them on for £200 each.
Citing his remorse, caring responsibilities and significant mental health issues, the judge in his case agreed to suspend a sentence of 18 months in prison for two years. She handed him a 30-day Rehabilitation Activity Requirement, to "help you get a support plan in place for when times are difficult". The judge also made a four-month home curfew, from 8pm to 8am daily.
Callum Salem
A dad-to-be bit and punched his pregnant partner, telling her: “I’m going to kill you and the baby.” Callum Salem launched into the attack at his victim’s flat after claiming - wrongly - he had doubts over whether he was the father of her baby. Describing the assault, a judge today told him: “You were jealous, you were possessive, you were out of control.”
The 22-year-old admitted assault occasioning bodily harm - but only on the verge of a trial over the allegation, and even then suggested he had acted in “excessive self-defence” - which Judge David Aubrey , QC, described as “deeply concerning”. The court heard Salem had withdrawn from that position and accepted the prosecution case.
Salem, of Quigley Street in Birkenhead , was handed an 18 month jail sentence suspended for two years and ordered to carry out 30 rehabilitation activity days, attend a ‘building better relationships’ programme, pay compensation and made the subject of a restraining order.
David Griffiths
A convicted paedophile caught with a schoolgirl in his car walked free from court. David Griffiths, 31, is not allowed to have unsupervised contact with children due to the terms of a Sexual Harm Prevention Order (SHPO). He received the order when he was spared jail for causing or inciting a child to engage in sexual activity and making indecent images of children.
Griffiths was also told to sign on the Sex Offenders Register when he was handed two years in prison, suspended for two years, in September 2017. But he breached his notification requirements and the SHPO when police spotted him driving a red Land Rover Discovery at "high speed".
Martyn Walsh, prosecuting, said officers stopped the vehicle in Wavertree , at around 7.30pm, on September 7 last year. They found Griffiths at the wheel with a "young girl wearing school uniform" sitting in the front passenger seat, who was aged 15.
Officers were speaking to Griffiths about his driving when they realised he was subject to the SHPO. Griffiths admitted failing to comply with the notification requirements of the Sex Offender Register by not informing the police he had moved to Bannerman Street on September 5. He also admitted three counts of breaching his SHPO, by having unsupervised contact with the 15-year-old girl, failing to make his mobile phones available to police for inspection, and possessing the two devices.
Griffiths, now of Earle Road, Wavertree, pleaded guilty on the basis he had met the 15-year-old girl at nearby shops to collect items from her for a family member. He said he told her not to get in the car, but she got in anyway, and that she was only in the car for 10 minutes when he drove her back to the street where he was living.
A judge handed Griffiths 12 months in prison, suspended for two years, with a 25-day Rehabilitation Activity Requirement to offer him "fairly intensive support", plus 100 hours of unpaid work and told him to pay £250 towards court costs.
Catherine Martin
A woman fled after driving into a five-year-old girl with her car while under the influence of cannabis. Catherine Martin was at the wheel of her red Peugeot when she hit the little girl near a school in Netherton, on September 20 last year. The 29-year-old drove away but was later arrested after her registration was tracked.
Liverpool Magistrates’ Court heard Martin had used cannabis the night before the accident and had not realised it was still in her system the next day. Martin, of Abingdon Grove, was disqualified from driving for 22 months and placed under a four month curfew, requiring her to be in the house from 7pm to 7am.
Matthew Simm
The family of a young man who downloaded images of children as young as three being abused stood by him after his arrest. Matthew Simm, a 21-year-old zoological student, had his house raided after the indecent images were uploaded to the internet via Twitter, Liverpool Crown Court heard.
Police arrived at his Lydiate home on May 6 last year after checks on a related IP address led them to that property. The court heard that forensic examination revealed a total of 703 images and videos, including 362 in the most serious Category A, which involves child rape.
Mr Dillon said that they also found 100 extreme pornographic images, of which one was a video. Simm later pleaded guilty to three offences relating to indecent images of children.
He sentenced him to eight months imprisonment suspended for two years, ordered him to carry out 150 hours unpaid work and 15 days rehabilitation activities. Simm was also ordered to sign on the Sexual Offenders Register for ten years and the judge imposed a Sexual Harm Prevention Order for the same length of time restricting his internet use.
Shannon Tuddenham
A veterinary nurse drunkenly groped a woman’s breasts after being invited to her house to look at a collection of exotic pets. Shannon Tuddenham bonded with her victim over their interest in rare animals but when she was invited to come round to look at some she sexually assaulted her.
The pregnant 26 year old was spared jail today but has lost her job as a result of her grim assault. A judge at Liverpool Crown Court said the incident, which took place on June 15 last year, was “nasty” and resulted in long lasting effects on the victim.
The pair had communicated over Facebook about exotic animals and the victim and her boyfriend organised for Tuddenham, of Garston, to visit their home in another part of Merseyside to see a number of their pets, including a python. However, Tuddenham became drunk and later groped the woman’s breasts in a car as they gave her a lift home. Tuddenham, of Lowbridge Court, was handed a 15 month prison term, suspended for 18 months.
Peter Wilson
A jilted man let himself into his ex’s home while she was on holiday and took pictures of the rooms to send to her later. Peter Wilson, of Eccleston, also watched the woman on her own home CCTV system and regularly drove past her home.
It all formed part of a weeks long stalking campaign between July and September last year. The 48-year-old avoided prison today despite his chilling behaviour, which also included harassing the woman’s new partner.
Angela Conlan, prosecuting, said Wilson and his ex were in a relationship for an extended period but it ended last summer. He then started tracking her Whatsapp messages and watching her on her home CCTV which he installed.
Wilson admitted stalking and was handed a 12 week prison term, suspended for two years, for the stalking of his ex. Magistrates also insisted he must complete a series of rehabilitation activities and pay £500 in compensation. For the harassment of the woman’s partner, he must undertake unpaid work. A restraining order prevents him from contacting either of them.
Donald Coleman
A terminally ill man who held a loaded gun to his head outside Royal Liverpool hospital was spared jail. Donald Coleman sparked a 12-hour police standoff when he dialled 999 and said he wanted to kill himself with a Russian semi-automatic pistol.
Armed officers descended on Prescot Street on November 3 last year. The front entrance of the Royal was closed, the road shut down and ambulances diverted to other hospitals during "severe disruption" . However, Judge Garrett Byrne today said: "This is a wholly exceptional and tragic case, and in my view, justice must be tempered by mercy."
Liverpool Crown Court heard Coleman rang 999 at around 10.30pm on November 3 last year, when he said he was very ill and wanted to end his life. Christopher Taylor, prosecuting, said the 61-year-old told police he "didn't want to hurt anybody" but someone had asked him to "mind" a gun for them.
Judge Byrne handed Coleman two years in prison, suspended for 18 months. Coleman later apologised for the disruption caused by the incident.
Louise Whelan
A mum breached a home curfew then blamed her dodgy internet signal. Louise Whelan was handed an 18-month community order in October last year for a catalogue of "disgraceful" offences.
They included threatening behaviour - when she claimed to have coronavirus and "threatened to infect" others - assaulting a police officer and a detention officer, and shoplifting. As part of that sentence, the 31-year-old, of Rankin Street, Poulton , was hit with a four-month home curfew, between 7pm and 7am daily.
But the serial offender admitted failing to comply with the electronically tagged curfew. The judge handed her 40 hours of unpaid work, citing her caring responsibilities and her "positive" engagement with probation officers.
Lee Hannan
An ex-teacher who filmed himself having sex with a former pupil 20 years his junior was spared jailed. Lee Hannan, 49, was arrested after the young woman went to police complaining she had been 'groomed'. Hannan had taught the woman while she was a pupil at a high school in the St Helens area.
Liverpool Crown Court heard how the woman had consented to having sex with Hannan and to having the pictures taken. Hannan, of Mossford Avenue, Crewe, Cheshire, had admitted two charges of taking indecent images of a child. Louise McCloskey, prosecuting, said Hannan had told police “he had no idea taking of images of sexual intercourse was illegal and had he known it was illegal he would never have taken those images.” The images were recorded on the victim's phone.
Judge David Aubrey, QC, said he was satisfied the girl had consented to sexual activity with Hannan and consented to the images being taken. He said: “I have to determine whether there was any grooming and I cannot find there was.”
He was sentenced to 12 months imprisonment but the judge suspended this for 18 months and ordered him to carry out 35 days of rehabilitation activities and imposed a seven year restraining order.
Canasta Dixon
A mum cheated the benefits system out of more than £47k while living with her casino worker partner. Canasta Dixon, 47, failed to notify the DWP she was sharing her home with David Dixon over a four year period and continued claiming benefits when she was not entitled to.
Her partner was employed by Genting Casino and Liverpool Crown Court heard he used her address on Glenfield Close, Prenton , on his bank statements. When the mum-of-three was quizzed by the Birkenhead Job Centre in November 2019 she admitted to being in a relationship with her partner. She denied they were married and said she had changed her surname to his on her 40th birthday.
She later pleaded guilty to two offences of fraud involving falsely claiming employment and support allowance and housing benefit totalling £47,354 after failing to notify a change in circumstances. The judge suspended a six month term of imprisonment for 18 months.
He also placed her under supervision for 18 months and ordered her to carry out 10 days rehabilitation activities. The court heard that repayments are being deducted from her benefits.
Michal Koper
A man who pulled a gun from his trousers claims he found it in a skip and decided to keep it. Armed police were called to the scene in Huyton when Michal Koper was seen producing the “flintlock type musket” from his waistband. The gun, which is believed to be about 200 years old, was dropped to the ground when he was handcuffed by officers.
The 39-year-old told Liverpool Crown Court he found the weapon in a skip and had kept it as “a curiosity”. The jury chose to accept this explanation and, on Wednesday, gave him the benefit of the doubt.
The court heard Koper was drunk at the time he pulled the gun out of his trousers. He admitted possessing an altered firearm without a certificate and was sentenced to six months imprisonment suspended for 12 months.
The judge said he would benefit from some support from probation and ordered him to carry out five days rehabilitation activities and 150 hours unpaid work.
Lee Johnson
A "cowardly" man tried to wriggle out of justice by pretending to be his brother - not once but on three separate occasions - when stopped by police. Lee Johnson had failed to attend court for offences of criminal damage and common assault committed in October 2020.
He had been released on bail but failed to attend the magistrates' court in December that year. Despite using his brother’s name on three separate occassions Johnson was not sent to jail. Johnson, of Park Brow Road, Kirkby , pleaded guilty to three offences of attempting to pervert the course of justice and possessing cannabis and was handed six months' imprisonment suspended for 18 months.
The judge also ordered him to carry out 120 hours unpaid work and 20 days rehabilitation activities and fined him £100.
