Police shake-up after councillor cleared in verbal abuse case

Jeni Harvey

CHANGES have been made to police procedures in North Yorkshire following the trial and acquittal of a councillor accused of verbally abusing a political rival.

John Blackie, 60, of Hardraw, near Hawes, was said to have insulted Coun Melva Steckles in front of guests at a function in the officers’ mess of Vimy Barracks, Catterick Garrison.

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Mrs Steckles, who like Coun Blackie is a member of both Richmondshire Council and North Yorkshire County Council, had replaced him as leader of Richmondshire Council following his expulsion from the Tory Party.

Coun Blackie denied using behaviour likely to cause harassment, alarm or distress and was found not guilty by District Judge David Meredith, sitting at Northallerton Magistrates Court in November last year.

Prior to being issued with a fixed penalty by police, Coun Blackie had never been interviewed by the force.

Following his acquittal the deputy chief constable of North Yorkshire Police, Adam Briggs, said that as a result of comments made by the judge, a review of the case should be undertaken.

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That review has now found that Coun Blackie should have been interviewed prior to a decision being taken as to whether the case should be prosecuted or dealt with under the fixed penalty procedure.

The review also determined that it was inappropriate for a fixed penalty to be issued given the circumstances of the case.

Coun Blackie told the Yorkshire Post yesterday: “I am very pleased with the outcome of the review. It justifies some of my concerns and comes on top of my acquittal.

“I always felt a deep sense of injustice, not only at being served with a fixed penalty notice for what was a short, sharp exchange between political opponents, but also at not being interviewed by police and prevented from giving my side of the story.

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“The review here lands firmly on my side. I should have been interviewed and I should not have been given a fixed penalty notice.”

As a result of the review, a number of improvements will be made to the North Yorkshire Police fixed penalty notice procedure.

The computer system at the force will also be improved to ensure that incident logs are updated more speedily.

Coun Blackie added: “No one will ever be given a fixed penalty notice by North Yorkshire Police in similar circumstances. That gives me a great deal of pleasure, because it wasn’t pleasant to find myself on the end of a fixed penalty notice without having the chance to give my side of the story.

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“I would have liked an apology from the police, but I’m going to be satisfied knowing that nobody in my position in future will suffer a similar injustice.”

However, the review was found “wanting” in other areas, the councillor added. “It found there was no political bias, but it didn’t feel like it at the time. The fixed penalty notice was served on the evidence of two political opponents who had an axe to grind.

“Perhaps one can be forgiven for thinking there is more than a whiff of political bias.”

At the conclusion of the review, deputy chief constable Mr Briggs said: “I am satisfied that this detailed review has confirmed that there was no evidence of political or other bias on the part of any North Yorkshire Police officers or staff.

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“At the conclusion of Coun Blackie’s trial, I undertook to commission a review. The communities of North Yorkshire and the City of York should draw confidence from the fact that this review was conducted both rapidly and thoroughly, and I am happy to confirm that remedial action will be taken to correct individual practices and those processes identified as in need of improvement.”