A School based Police Officer has been convicted for physically abusing a 10 year old boy in school but received a ridiculously lenient sentence
UK | CRIME
FACT BOX: Schools and educational institution in the UK have on site police stations and officers.
Liverpool, England, UK:
Cristopher Cruise, 57 (2021) Merseyside Police Officer convicted of abusing a 10 year old boy on school grounds
CCTV footage from a special needs school revealed the physical abuse of a 10 year old boy by a fully grown adult servicing, on duty Police Officer, Christopher Cruise, 57.
The boy who has sever autism and is a pupil at a special school for children with learning difficulties in Liverpool, was recorded on CCTV from the school hall ways, crying out as the injured child was desperately trying to escape the abuse and crawl away to safety across the floor towards a door to get help.
The footage shows 57 year old Christopher Cruise, who was a serving Merseyside Police Officer and School Liaison Officer launch into a physical attack on the child before threatening others.
The boy attempts to escape and crawl through a door to safety and to raise the alarm for help before Cruise reaches down, grabs the child and drags him across the corridor while the boys legs trail limp behind him.
The boy was left with leg injuries following the attack.
Cruise as convicted of assault against a minor at Crewe Magistrates’ Court.
Cruise then appeal the conviction, but the conviction was upheld at Chester Crown Court following the unsuccessful appeal.
The initial attack took place in January 2020 in a Liverpool Special Educational Needs school.
Cruise however successfully retired before he could be fired and loose his pension or benefit rights. The police force told the press that had he remained on the payroll he would have been dismissed for gross misconduct.
That hearing heard how after the initial attack on the 10 year old boy Cruise walked into a classroom and asked the children if they could hear the victim crying in an attempt to intimidate witnesses.
Cruise then pointed at one of the other young children and threatened physical violence, saying: “You’re next”.
A teacher at the school told officers he felt Cruise was trying to intimidate him to prevent him reporting the assault during a conversation later the same day.
Bizarrely, Cruise was not convicted of affray or any threats of violence nor witness intimidation or interfering with a witness.
The trial drew wide spread condemnation for extreme leniency with Cruise receiving no custodial sentence or community order, instead only being fined £800 GBP.
He was additionally ordered to pay £100 to the child in compensation, £85 as a UK standard surcharge, contribute £500 towards the cost of the prosecution (this is means tested based on his salary) and ordered to pay an additional £1’620 towards the cost of his unsuccessful appeal’s legal costs.
A relative of the child, who did not want to be named, told the local newspaper the ‘ECHO’:
“I think he should have been put in prison. His sentence was so lenient. He is a bully, that’s all he is, just a bully.”
Speaking earlier about the incident, she added:
“We did not even know about it until C*****e called his mum. We didn’t even take it to court, that was the school and Merseyside Police. He has autism and he struggles a lot. He is much younger in his head, more like a five year old. He is also small for his age as he had growth problems. We are all absolutely furious. His days are hard enough already.”
The UK has a long history of police corruption and violence against civilians, with Staffordshire and London’s Met Police being the two forces most likely to commit violent acts or fabricate evidence against civilians for personal gains. Ethnic minorities are heavily disproportionately affected, in particular black, mixed race and Muslim minorities.
_
© 2021 Al-Sahawat Times, Printed and Distributed by IPMG, an Al-Said Group entity.
Since you’re here …
… we have a small favour to ask. More people are reading Al-Sahawat Times than ever but advertising revenues across the global media industry are falling fast. And unlike many news organisations, we haven’t put up a total paywall. We want to keep our journalism as open as we can. So you can see why we need to ask for your help. Al-Sahawat Times’ independent, investigative journalism takes a lot of time, money and hard work to produce. But we do it because we believe truly ethical media and an unbias perspective really matters.
“I appreciate there not being a paywall: it is more democratic for the media to be available for all and not a commodity to be purchased by a few. I’m happy to make a contribution so others with less means still have access to information.”
If everyone who reads our reporting, who likes it, helps fund it, the future of ethical media and the futures of our staff and their families would be much more secure. For as little as £1, you can support Al-Sahawat Times and it only takes a minute. Thank you.
This story is available on:
Talk to a journalist
Email: NewsDesk@alsahawat.com
Web: alsahawat.com
Follow Al-Sahawat Times
⬆️ Follow on Instagram
⬆️ Follow on Twitter
⬆️ Follow on LinkedIn
⬆️ Follow on Facebook
⬆️ Follow on YouTube
Read it on FLIPBOARD
Views: 2
