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Welcome to our forum. Feel free to post a message. This forum is for not only members of ACAL but also survivors, or any others who have views. The purpose is to enable members or survivors to exchange views on not only different legal topics which affect the cases they are involved in, but also any worries survivors may have about anything they wish to discuss. Please remember that this forum is not private and can be read by anyone. We are keeping under review whether the forum should become private and available to members only.
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brian clare
 Oct 16, 06 - 4:47 PM |
Operation Rose
MEMORANDUM 44 Submitted by Chris Machell, Detective Chief Superintendent, Northumbria Police (CA 188) Operation Rose, an enquiry conducted by Northumbria Police into allegations of Historic Sexual and Physical Child Abuse within care homes throughout the North East of England, began in 1997. The investigation commenced after a woman in her twenties disclosed to a Social Worker, that she and a friend had both been subjected to Sexual and Physical abuse whilst they were residents in a Newcastle upon Tyne care home. After a multi-agency meeting between Police, Newcastle Social Services and the NSPCC, officers set out to fully investigate the claims. Initial enquiries revealed that six victims were alleging abuse by eight suspects who had been employed in a total of seven Care Homes within four Local Authority areas. Some of these allegations dated back to the 1960s. The investigation rapidly expanded to 10 victims and 20 Children's Homes. Following best practice established in other areas, Northumbria Police established that the only manageable way of developing the enquiry would be to seek information from a fixed proportion of residents in each of the Care Homes. Without revealing the nature of their investigations, the enquiry team wrote to 10 per cent of former residents, informing them that an enquiry had commenced into a Home at which they were once resident, and asking them if they had any information which might help. One third of the recipients replied either saying they had information or stating that they did not wish the police to contact them. The courts subsequently upheld the process, accepting that the letter simply sought information and did not make suggestions to the recipients. No complaints of malpractice were received and no allegations of collusion between victims has been upheld. In 1998, the enquiry was broadened to include renewed allegations concerning Carers working at Witherwack House, Sunderland, which had been subject to an earlier investigation in 1992. Six people were found guilty of a variety of charges and sentenced to a total of 20 years imprisonment, including one 12 month sentence suspended for two years. Three suspected died prior to trial. A number of cases were halted because the judiciary deemed that the length of time taken for the cases to reach court breached Article 6 of the Human Rights Act, which requires a hearing within a reasonable time. Many delays, however, occurred because of adjournments made at the request of defence lawyers and the courts themselves. One "fast track" case—which should have been heard in 96 days took 33 months to come to court, despite all necessary Police work being completed within the required deadlines. The final trial arising out of the Operation Rose investigation concluded in April 2002. All the agencies involved in the enquiry, including the Crown Prosecution Service and the counselling services provided for victims, have since reviewed the processes involved in the investigation. Some of the "Good Practice Pointers" have been summarised as requested and are attached to this letter. My views in relation to four of the five specific questions contained in the committee's press notice accord with those expressed by Mr Grange on behalf of ACPO. Question two is a matter for the CPS I believe |
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brian clare
Oct 16th, 2006 - 4:53 PM |
compensation payments
ANGRY people who claim they were abused as children in a Sunderland council-run care home say their compensation payments are set to be slashed. The alleged child abuse victims claim they could lose thousands of pounds each after being told they might have to pay court costs. Council lawyers had agreed out-of-court settlements of between £1,000 and £50,000 with 15 alleged victims. Darren Watts, 35, who lived at the house between 1982 and 1985, says he was promised £10,000 in compensation, but has now been told he might only get £7,000. He said: "What is the point in taking this kind of action if it is going to end up costing you at the end of the day? "I have battled for years to get this in the open. I have been through identification parades and it ends up taking a lot out of you. "Now, to be told that the £10,000 could be knocked down to £7,000 leaves me a bit cheesed-off to say the least." Mr Watts is part of a 60-strong group who claim their lives were ruined at Sunderland's now-demolished Witherwack House, and 24 other care homes across the region between 1960 and 1990. The council has denied liability for the allegations, which ranged from torture and rape to emotional abuse. Brian Clare, 35, who led the campaign for justice, says the decision to charge court costs has angered and upset many of the alleged victims. He added: "People are annoyed. They are fuming. For some of them it's like being knocked back to square one. "We have been fighting for 25 years and it has not been easy, so to be told this is a real slap in the face." Solicitor Brian Puech, of Sunderland-based company Richard Reed who represented many of the alleged victims, said: "The settlement was made on the basis that the other side pay the court costs, but they are entitled to object to that and say they don't want to pay them "We are in the process of negotiations so we can arrive at a point when we reach some kind of suitable settlement." A spokesman at Sunderland Council added: "The matter is being dealt with by solicitors acting on behalf of the council's insurers and not the council itself. It would be inappropriate to comment any further." Three years ago, four ex-social workers at the home walked free, after a trial into claims of child neglect collapsed. A Newcastle Crown Court judge cleared them, after ruling that witness statements from events up to 20 years earlier could not be relied on |
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