How Could You? Hall of Shame-UK-Stuart Thornton UPDATED

Stuart Thornton, 65, from Cowling, who suffers from diabetes and was registered as blind more than 20 years ago, has pleaded not guilty to 13 allegations of sexual abuse of youngsters at the now-closed home in Carleton Road, Skipton.

Yesterday at Bradford Crown Court, Judge Neil Davey QC directed the jury of ten women and two men to find Thornton not guilty of two charges of gross indecency with a child.

The judge said that, having reviewed the evidence, the prosecution could not prove that the girl was aged under 14 at the time of those alleged offences.

The defendant is still accused of two charges of gross indecency with a child; two of indecent assault; six of indecent assault on a male person under 14; and one of buggery.

Questioned by his barrister, Chloe Fairley, Thornton rejected all the allegations made by the complainants.

Thornton denied going into the room of one boy at night and abusing him, or ever touching him in a sexual way.

He said children never went in his room. “There was no reason for them to be in my room.”

Asked whether he got into bed with any of the boys and if there was sexual touching, Thornton said: “Not at all. I am not that way inclined.”

He denied touching a boy when he was in the bath, or masturbating; and rebutted that he approached the girl from behind in the kitchen and rubbed himself against her, or touched her breasts.

The court has heard one complainant told police that Thornton threatened to withhold privileges or dish out punishment if he did not do as he wanted.

Thornton, of Spring Gardens, Cowling, threatened one boy with never seeing his parents again if he did not comply, prosecutor Christopher Dunn said.

Mr Dunn said Thornton worked at the home first as a volunteer and then as an employed carer, between 1971 and 1976. It is alleged that the complainants were aged between five and 13 when Thornton began abusing them.

One child suffered “systematic and regular” abuse in a dormitory at the home, the jury heard.

Now a man in his fifties, he told the police Thornton forced his head into a pillow to stop him crying. “He thought he was suffocating,” Mr Dunn said.

The trial continues.”

Carer accused of sexually abusing children says he did nothing wrong

[Craven Harold 5/25/17 by Alistair Shand]

REFORM Puzzle Piece

Update:” A children’s  charity condemned a carer after he was found guilty of sexually abusing youngsters at a home.

A jury at Bradford Crown Court today found 65-year-old Stuart Thornton guilty of offences against three boys and a girl in the 1970s at a children’s home in Carleton Road, Skipton, which has since closed.

He was convicted after a two-week trial of six offences of indecent assault on a male person under 14; two of gross indecency with a child; two of indecent assault and one of buggery.

The jury found him not guilty, on the direction of Judge Neil Davey QC, of two counts of gross indecency with a child.

Judge Davey adjourned sentencing until July 7 and granted conditional bail to the defendant. Thornton was made subject of an interim Sexual Harm Prevention Order and ordered to sign the sexual offender register.

An NSPCC spokesman said after the case: “Thornton used his power and trusted position as a carer to commit appalling sex crimes against children over many years.

“In a home that should have been a place of comfort and safety, he subjected his vulnerable victims to horrific abuse and controlled them through fear and punishment.””

Jury finds former carer Stuart Thornton, 65, guilty of sexual abuse at children’s home in Skipton

[The Telegraph Argus 5/26/17 by Steve Wright]

Update 2:“A former children’s home worker from Cowling has been jailed for 19 years with an additional three years to be served on licence for non-recent child sexual abuse at a children’s home in Skipton.

Stuart Thornton, 65, of Cross Street was sentenced at Bradford Crown Court on 7 July 2017 after being found guilty of offences against three boys and one girl at the former home on Carleton Road, which has since closed.

Mr Thornton worked at the home as a volunteer, then as an employed carer between 1971 and 1976 when the offences happened.

He stood trial in May 2017 and was found guilty by jury of six offences of indecent assault on a boy under 14, two offences of gross indecency with a child, two offences of indecent assault and one offence of buggery. The victims were aged between five and 13 at the time of the abuse.

He was also placed on the sex offenders register for life, barred from working with children, and issued with an interim Sexual Harm Prevention Order.

Detective Constable Gillian Gowling, who led the investigation, said: “Firstly I would like to acknowledge the victims’ bravery in coming forward and reporting the abuse they suffered as children. It is a difficult thing to do, especially re-living it through the court process. However, their courage means that Thornton is now facing the consequences of his sickening crimes.

“Thornton was employed as a ‘carer’ of children, who, by the very fact that they were in a children’s home, needed protection and care. He abused his position in the most horrific way possible and his victims have had to live with that abuse for years before seeing justice being done. I hope it gives them a small degree of comfort, knowing that he has finally been held accountable for what he did to them.

“Anyone who is a victim of sexual abuse should not hesitate to come forward, regardless of how long ago it happened. It will be fully investigated, you will have the support of specially trained officers, and you will have access to a range of specialist agencies who can provide you with advice and support to help you come to terms with what is a devastating experience.

“Child abuse is everyone’s business and we urge anyone who suspects a child is being abused, to report it. Your information could help form a wider picture of offending and lead to more children being protected.””

Former children’s home carer jailed for 19 years for abusing children

[Cumbria Crack 07/07/2017 ]