Megi Rychlikova

A York jury unanimously found that former North Yorkshire councillor and mayor Patricia Marsh distributed written material likely to stir up racial hatred through tweets condemning Jews and Israel’s actions in Gaza. Marsh, 78, was declared mentally and physically unfit to stand trial after developing dementia, so jurors determined only whether she had committed the acts, not whether she was criminally guilty. Judge Sean Morris imposed an absolute discharge, while the Crown Prosecution Service defended continuing the case because of the alleged offence’s seriousness, its impact on witnesses and the wider community, and the need to maintain confidence in the justice system.

Paul Wright, 62, pleaded guilty to failing to provide an evidential breath test after HGV drivers stopped him on a narrow road near Riccall the morning after he watched a World Cup match at a pub. A roadside test recorded 84 micrograms of alcohol per 100 millilitres of breath, more than twice the legal limit of 35. The lorry drivers took his keys and kept him at the scene until police arrived. Magistrates banned Wright from driving for 12 months, fined him £120, and ordered him to pay a £48 surcharge and £85 in prosecution costs.

Alexandru Florea, 23, pleaded guilty to stealing £754 worth of alcohol from Sainsbury's at Monks Cross in York. He concealed 29 bottles in bags beneath salad packs, removed their security tags and tried to leave with an accomplice, but staff recorded the getaway car's number plate. Police arrested him the following day in Selby. York magistrates sentenced him to a 12-month community order, 150 hours of unpaid work, a 12-month ban from Monks Cross, a £114 surcharge and £85 in prosecution costs.

Davie Lee Knight and Christopher Terry denied charges related to an alleged arson attack on a Pickering family’s home. Terry also denied dangerous driving. Both appeared via video link from Hull Prison, were remanded in custody, and will return to court on September 8, with a trial scheduled for December 7.

York Magistrates Court sentenced seven defendants in cases involving assaults on police, medical and NHS security workers, racial abuse, sandwich theft, sexual offences, restraining-order breaches, cocaine possession and criminal damage. Sentences ranged from two weeks in prison to six-month terms, including suspended sentences with treatment or rehabilitation requirements, compensation payments, restraining and sexual harm prevention orders, and sex-offender registration.

Six drivers from York, North Yorkshire and East Yorkshire received driving bans after appearing before magistrates. Their offences included causing serious injury through careless driving, drink driving, drug driving, failing to stop after an accident and failing to provide a breath specimen. Bans ranged from 12 months to 40 months, alongside community orders, unpaid work, treatment requirements, fines and prosecution costs.

Pet cremation company Time Right Ltd, trading as Pet Cremation Services, pleaded guilty at Guildford Magistrates' Court to safety breaches involving the transport of clinical waste and soda lime in Surrey. The driver lacked the required training certificate for transporting the dangerous goods. The company was fined £6,660 and ordered to pay £85 in prosecution costs and a £2,000 statutory surcharge, totaling £8,745.

Benjamin Swift, 22, was sentenced at York Crown Court after being convicted of causing serious injury by dangerous driving in a July 2024 crash near Castle Howard. He had been driving his Porsche at 70–80mph on a 60mph road when he overtook improperly, lost control and collided with a Land Rover Defender carrying a family. The Defender’s driver, Philip Thompson, suffered a broken sternum, while he and his partner experienced lasting psychological effects. Swift received a two-year suspended prison sentence, a two-year driving ban followed by an extended test, 25 days of rehabilitation, 200 hours of unpaid work, £4,380 in prosecution costs and £1,600 compensation.

David Douglas, 54, of Hull, pleaded guilty at York Magistrates’ Court to deliberately setting off security alarms at Fulford Road Police Station after his arrest and stealing £220 worth of goods from Sports Direct in York on January 11. He received a six-month conditional discharge for each offence, concurrent with a prison sentence he was already serving for separate offences in Hull.

Alex Lilley, 35, pleaded guilty to harassing a York woman he met online after she ended their intermittent relationship. He travelled more than 100 miles to her home, continued contacting her despite bail conditions, used a false social-media identity and made up to 23 withheld-number calls in 20 minutes. Lilley received a 12-month community order, a £620 fine, costs and a surcharge, alongside a five-year restraining order prohibiting contact with the woman or approaching places where she might be. The defence said he was remorseful, receiving treatment for depression and accepting that the relationship was over.

Marc Antony Franklin, 49, pleaded guilty at York Crown Court to wounding with intent after striking a family friend in the face with a drinking glass at the Nag’s Head in Micklegate following an afternoon of drinking at York Racecourse. A glass shard became embedded in the victim’s face and left a scar. Franklin said the attack resulted from pent-up anger, while his defence said he had also taken Valium without a prescription and could not remember the incident. The judge suspended a three-year prison sentence for two years, ordering 30 days of rehabilitative activity, 150 hours of unpaid work and £1,000 in prosecution costs.

Daniel Paszkowski, 41, was jailed for three years and nine months after pleading guilty to stalking his former partner and breaching a restraining order. The court heard that he confronted her in Selby, attempted to kiss her, made 83 phone calls in one day and repeatedly violated restrictions imposed after earlier convictions for coercive and controlling behaviour and assaults. Judge Sean Morris extended the restraining order indefinitely to ban Paszkowski from Selby, while Paszkowski’s defence said he planned to move to Wakefield after prison and argued that the ban would prevent contact with his seriously ill mother.

Serial shoplifter Richard Cook, 47, pleaded guilty at York Magistrates’ Court to 15 shop thefts, assaulting a supermarket employee and a council worker, possessing cocaine, and failing to attend court. During a May theft at Morrisons in York, Cook sprayed an aerosol at a worker and threatened to set him and the store on fire, though nobody was injured. Deputy District Judge Imran Hussain imposed a 12-month prison sentence suspended for 18 months because recent legislation required sentences of 12 months or less to be suspended absent exceptional circumstances. Cook must complete 20 days of rehabilitative activity and pay compensation to the worker, Morrisons, Tesco and One Stop. The court also heard that Cook had been homeless, struggled with alcohol and had failed to comply with a previous community order.

Thomas Metcalfe pleaded guilty at York Magistrates’ Court to causing serious injury by careless driving after his Peugeot SUV collided with a motorcycle on the A169 near the Hole of Horcum. The motorcyclist spent four weeks in a coma, suffered eight brain bleeds and continues to experience physical and psychological problems. A second motorcycle and another vehicle were also involved. Metcalfe, who reportedly suffered an epileptic seizure after the crash, surrendered his licence and was given an interim driving ban. He was released on bail while a pre-sentence report is prepared, with sentencing scheduled for September 23.

Jessica Simms of Selby pleaded guilty at York Magistrates’ Court to wasting police time through repeated false requests and to kicking a police officer during an attempted arrest. The court imposed a 12-month conditional discharge, a £50 fine for breaching an earlier order, compensation and costs, while continuing a community order that includes alcohol rehabilitation and other rehabilitative activities. Her solicitor attributed her conduct to underlying psychological issues, while the prosecution said police had attempted to avoid arrest and use minimal force.

York man Luke Ellerby, 45, was jailed for 62 weeks and banned from driving for 18 months after admitting a series of shoplifting offences and a burglary, while being convicted at trial of driving while disqualified and without insurance. The offences involved retailers and businesses across York and included thefts of food, alcohol, cleaning products, clothing and an e-bike. The court heard that probation officers had previously considered him “unmanageable” and that he had continued offending during a suspended sentence. He was described as showing a flagrant disregard for court orders, people and property.

Billy Joe Hannigan, 29, pleaded guilty to riding a Kawasaki motorcycle while disqualified in Clifton, York, four months into a 40-month driving ban imposed for drink driving. Magistrates extended the ban by nine months until October 2029 and imposed an eight-week prison sentence suspended for 12 months, requiring him to complete 15 days of rehabilitative activities. The court also revoked and converted his existing community order into a concurrent suspended sentence; his solicitor cited poor mental health and a difficult period in his life.

Craig Spurr was sentenced to prison after staff at the Inner Space petrol station shop in York locked him inside when he and another man attempted to steal meat at 4am. He damaged the shop doors while trying to escape, was convicted in his absence, and was also prosecuted for a previous café burglary and thefts from the Co-op and Sainsbury’s. Magistrates activated a previously suspended 24-week sentence, added four weeks to run concurrently, and ordered compensation payments. His solicitor cited serious health problems and argued that custody might help protect his life.

Scarborough Magistrates' Court sentenced several defendants for offences including racial abuse of a police officer, theft from Tesco, harassment, criminal damage, assaulting an emergency worker, drug driving, driving without insurance and grievous bodily harm. Sentences ranged from fines and community orders to prison terms, with rehabilitation requirements, compensation, costs and driving bans imposed in some cases.

Six defendants were sentenced at York Magistrates Court for offences including theft, assault, carrying knives and a hammer, affray, breaching a restraining order, possessing cannabis and assaulting police. Sentences included immediate imprisonment, suspended prison terms, community orders, rehabilitation requirements, compensation and prosecution costs.

Benjamin Lawrenson, 24, of Selby, pleaded guilty to falsely imprisoning a woman in Sheffield on November 3, 2022. Sheffield Crown Court sentenced him to 26 weeks in prison, suspended for 18 months, with supervision, rehabilitation activities and 180 hours of unpaid work. A two-year restraining order prohibits him from contacting the victim or visiting her home.

Paul James Merritt, 40, pleaded guilty at York Magistrates’ Court to assaults on a volunteer, threatening hospital security staff, disorderly conduct toward police, and criminal damage to a window and a police van. The incidents occurred at York Hospital, a homeless breakfast club at Central Methodist Church, and a Tesco store while he was homeless and apparently affected by drugs or alcohol. The court heard that Merritt had a long-term heroin addiction, emotional instability and a history of psychosis. Although he was already subject to a suspended prison sentence from Newcastle, magistrates imposed a 12-month conditional discharge for the York offences, extended the suspended-sentence period by 12 months, and did not activate the prison term.

Matthew Robson, 19, of Harrogate, pleaded guilty at York Magistrates' Court to carrying a knife in public, assaulting a pregnant woman at a funeral, and failing twice to attend court. Prosecutors said he had been drinking, threatened a mourner with a knife and disrupted the funeral at York Crematorium. Robson, who has autism and reported mental-health difficulties, received a 52-week prison sentence suspended for 18 months, along with rehabilitative activity, prosecution costs and a statutory surcharge.

The Court of Appeal Criminal Division rejected Philip Noble’s challenge to his 52-month sentence for stabbing a 16-year-old boy in York and carrying a knife as an offensive weapon. The victim suffered a life-threatening femoral artery injury, required CPR and five blood transfusions, and may face lasting effects. Noble, who has 101 previous convictions and a history of drug addiction, had argued that his sentence was excessive; it remains four years and four months.

Laura-May Croft, 38, of Selby, pleaded guilty at York magistrates’ court to stealing clothing, shoes and accessories worth £1,160.40 from Marks & Spencer at Vangarde Shopping Park in York. Staff monitored her on CCTV as she filled a trolley and attempted to leave; her payment cards failed when she was stopped. Croft admitted the offence to police, and her solicitor cited remorse, personal circumstances and mental health issues. She received a 12-month community order including 15 days of rehabilitative activities, plus a £40 fine, a £114 statutory surcharge and £85 in prosecution costs.

Owen Hill, 34, of Scarborough, pleaded guilty to sending a violent threat to a woman and assaulting her, causing actual bodily harm. Scarborough Magistrates' Court imposed a 12-month community order including alcohol treatment and rehabilitation activities, along with a 12-month restraining order barring contact with the woman and £85 in prosecution costs.

Serial shoplifter Lee John McDonald pleaded guilty to six thefts from shops in Selby over four days, including Marks and Spencer, Aldi, Home Bargains and B&M. He threatened an Aldi employee by claiming he had a knife, although none was found. McDonald, who has 89 previous convictions and no fixed address, said he wanted to be imprisoned because he believed custody would provide accommodation and probation supervision. Magistrates activated an earlier suspended eight-week sentence and added 17 weeks for the new offences.

Nigel Moss, 58, of Darlington, received a 23-week prison sentence suspended for 12 months after admitting that he caused serious injury by careless driving while over the cocaine limit on Blakey Ridge in the North York Moors. He must complete 120 hours of unpaid work and is disqualified from driving for 18 months.

Oluwaseun Adewole, 31, was stopped on Tang Hall Lane in York after police observed him struggling to stay on his side of the road. He recorded 72 micrograms of alcohol per 100 millilitres of breath roadside and 58 at the police station, above the legal limit of 35. Adewole pleaded guilty to drink driving and driving on a provisional licence without the required supervisor or L-plates. He was banned for 15 months, fined £350, and ordered to pay a £140 surcharge and £85 in costs. His solicitor said he had consumed two pints while watching a World Cup match and misunderstood the licensing requirements after his full licence had previously been cancelled.

Carla Simpson and Joshua Nelson, from Eggborough, pleaded guilty at York Crown Court to possessing cannabis with intent to supply. Police found approximately £4,320–£5,400 worth of cannabis and dealing equipment at their home, while financial investigators identified £68,600 in bank transfers and cash deposits inconsistent with their declared benefits income. Both received nine-month prison sentences suspended for 18 months, with rehabilitative requirements; Simpson was also ordered to undergo six months of drug rehabilitation. A £275 cash seizure was confiscated, but prosecutors did not seek a broader criminal assets hearing.

Six men—Gary Ambler, Stuart William Ambler, Daniel Hall, Christopher James Kay, Aaron Morrison and Garrison Donne—have been charged with involvement in alleged unlawful violence at the Nags Head pub on Micklegate in York, where furniture was reportedly thrown and people were allegedly cut by glass. After appearing at York Magistrates' Court, all six were sent to York Crown Court for a plea and trial preparation hearing and released on unconditional bail.

Jonathan David Haigh, 66, of Selby, pleaded guilty at York Magistrates' Court to causing serious injury to a woman by careless driving in a two-car collision on the B1224 at Rudgate, west of York, on February 23. The woman, who was driving a Hyundai, was taken to hospital. Haigh, who was driving a Volkswagen, was disqualified from driving pending sentencing and released on bail. His case was adjourned for a pre-sentence report, with sentencing scheduled for August 24.

Farmer Mark Firby, 61, pleaded guilty at York Magistrates Court to threatening to slash the tyres of a father who was driving his daughter to a riding lesson at The Hollies Riding School in Richmond. Prosecutors said Firby displayed what appeared to be a knife and threatened the man after objecting to his speed near an event involving about 100 children and horses. Firby's lawyer said he had been holding keys, acknowledged the threat, and argued that he was concerned about safety. Firby declined an opportunity to write an apology, citing his pride. Magistrates imposed a six-month conditional discharge, £85 in prosecution costs and a £26 surcharge; the conviction may affect his shotgun and taxi licences. The father and his daughter were subsequently barred from the riding school.

Chelsea O’Brien, also known as Chelsea Briggs, was jailed for 49 weeks after pleading guilty to 16 theft and assault charges and being convicted at trial of four additional shoplifting offences. The 31-year-old stole more than £1,800 of meat, food, laundry products and toiletries from Sainsbury’s, Savers, Tesco, Co-op, Spar and other stores across York, and was described by the court as having an appalling record for similar offending.

District judge Mark Daley ordered Paul Nelson and the group living with him to leave an unnamed public roadway off Whaites Lane in Asenby near Thirsk. North Yorkshire Council said the group had no authorisation to occupy the highway and had ignored notices requiring them to leave. Nelson argued that he had lived at the site since 2020 and that eviction would make the group homeless, while disputing some of the council’s evidence. The order enables the council to remove the group.

Scarborough Magistrates Court imposed sentences on five defendants who pleaded guilty to offences including strangulation, drink driving, assault, theft and possessing indecent images of children. Sentences ranged from suspended prison terms to community orders, with conditions including rehabilitation, unpaid work, alcohol monitoring, driving disqualification, compensation, registration as a sex offender and a sexual harm prevention order.

Ashton Patrick Head, 23, was sentenced at York Crown Court to three years in prison after pleading guilty to two charges of strangling his partner. The victim blacked out during both incidents and was also assaulted and left fearful for her safety. Judge Simon Hickey said Head appeared to have an entrenched attitude toward women and imposed a 10-year restraining order prohibiting contact, approaches to the victim’s home or workplace, and social-media references to her. The court heard Head had previous arrests related to another partner, and that he had begun rehabilitation and mental-health assessments while in custody.

Nicholas Lawton, 61, of Tadcaster, pleaded guilty at York Magistrates' Court to distributing an indecent image of a child and exposing himself while following a lone woman. The offences occurred while he was subject to a community order for possessing child sexual abuse images. The judge described his conduct as an escalation of the risk he posed, refused bail and remanded him in custody. A pre-sentence report will be prepared before sentencing on August 12.

David Michael Ward, 54, of Acomb, was jailed for 10 of the 12 weeks previously suspended after breaching the conditions of a court order. He had originally been sentenced for six shop thefts from Co-op and Tesco stores in York involving meat, alcohol, laundry and cleaning products, and dog treats. Although Ward said he could not attend probation appointments because he was on holiday, the probation service said the holiday dates did not cover all of the missed appointments. The court concluded that he had prioritised his own activities over the punishment, while taking into account that he had completed some requirements.

A woman returned to her York home to find convicted killer Peter Harris inside, leading to his arrest and imprisonment after he pleaded guilty to burglary. Harris, who has a long criminal history including a manslaughter conviction, entered through an unlocked door while intoxicated and left when confronted. CCTV footage identified him, and the court imposed a sentence of 876 days.

A repeat shoplifter, Neil David Gordon, was jailed for two years after stealing nearly £3,800 worth of England sportswear and other goods from shops in Scarborough and Leeds. He targeted JD Sports and Footlocker multiple times during the World Cup before being arrested while taking 17 England shirts in one incident. With more than 200 prior convictions, Gordon also breached a criminal behaviour order barring him from certain shops. The judge condemned his persistent offending, while his defence highlighted homelessness, lack of support, and mental health issues contributing to his cycle of crime.

A York man, Paul Coull, was convicted after engaging in sexual conversations with what he believed was a 14‑year‑old boy, who was actually an adult member of a vigilante group. He pleaded guilty to attempted sexual communication with a child and received a nine‑month suspended sentence with rehabilitation requirements, unpaid work, and a seven‑year sexual harm prevention order. The judge noted that while much of the chat was non‑sexual, parts became unacceptable, and highlighted the persistence of the vigilante group. Coull’s defence cited depression and loneliness, and police found no evidence of indecent images on his devices.