Burglars, banned bad drivers, rapists and other sex offenders, plus a cannabis farmer were among the defendants jailed at Durham Crown Court, in June.
The criminal justice system is attempting to deal with huge case backlogs at courts across the country and Durham is no different.
It is no longer unusual for trial dates to be fixed with start dates in 2028 as earlier vacant slots are reserved for cases where defendants are in custody.
But the court is still seeing plenty of hearings reach a conclusion with offenders in more serious cases still at risk of being sent "down the stairs" to the cells.
Shay Malcolm Race
A banned driver reverse-rammed a police vehicle to the point it lost power as he made off from officers.
Shay Malcolm Race then managed to “lose” a second police car after driving around a rat run of back streets and alleyways in Easington Lane in the early hours of May 2.
But his luck ran out when he parked the Audi he had been driving and tried to discard the car keys as another police vehicle was passing.
He was recognised and arrested in the early hours of Saturday, May 2.
The court heard Race was handed an 18-month suspended prison sentence, in August last year for dangerous driving and drug-drink driving in December 2024.
Following his latest episode of motoring madness, Race, now 22, of Murton Lane, Easington Lane, admitted dangerous driving, driving while disqualified and without insurance.
Activating 12-months of the suspended sentence, the judge added a further 12-months for the new offences, making a total consecutive sentence of 24 months.
Race was also banned from driving for a further three years.
Easington Lane banned driver rammed police vehicle in Audi
David McDonald
A Newton Aycliffe predator will spend the next decade behind bars after raping a child.
David McDonald, 64, was found guilty of the sickening sex attack by a jury on April 1, after a three-day trial at the court.
McDonald, of Middridge Road, denied the offence on which he was convicted, plus 11 others, of which he was acquitted at trial.
Recorder Jamie Hill KC said the defendant maintained his denials at trial but was convicted after his DNA was found on the victim.
Imposing the ten-year prison sentence, the Recorder said the defendant must serve at least two-thirds before being released on licence.
He also put in place an indefinite restraining order, relating to the victim.
McDonald will be subject to registration as a sex offender, also indefinitely.
Newton Aycliffe man jailed for decade after raping child
Hazaroth Wise
A drunk and drugged-up man had to be dragged off a woman he tried to molest as she slept.
Hazaroth Wise tried to force himself on her despite her protestations, and after being pushed away claimed the woman “f***ing wanted it”,
The court was told the victim went to sleep as she had been drinking, and woke to find Wise kissing her neck and the side of her face.
Robin Turton, prosecuting, said Wise asked her: “Is this okay, can I do this?”
She repeatedly told him, “no”, to which he responded by saying: “It’s fine”.
The next thing she was aware of was the defendant being pulled from her and, upon waking, she realised she was no longer wearing her underwear.
The distressed victim reported it to the police and when he was interviewed later that day, Wise claimed consensual sexual touching took place.
Accused of sexual assault, the 32-year-old defendant, of Starflower Close, New Silksworth, Sunderland, admitted the charge at a plea hearing, in April.
Judge Aisha Wadoodi said Wise had shown “minimal insight and remorse” and did not desist of his own volition, but only when dragged from the woman.
She imposed an 18-month prison sentence and made him subject to a restraining order, prohibiting him from approaching or contacting his victim for five years.
He must also register as a sex offender for five years.
Sunderland man dragged off woman during sexual assault in her own home
David Appleton
A sneak burglar targeted the home of a near neighbour, taking the car keys and driving off in his vehicle, which was only recovered three days later.
The white Dacia Sandero was noticed to be missing from outside the home of the owner, in The Moorlands, Gilesgate, Durham, when his partner was leaving to go to work at 6.45am on May 5.
The court was told she informed her partner who had gone to bed at 11.30pm the previous night but believes he may have inadvertently forgotten to lock the front door.
The car keys had been on a hanger in the hallway, out of immediate sight from the front door.
On checking the doorbell camera, it was noticed it was activated by the presence of two males wearing balaclavas less than an hour before his partner left to go to work that day.
Elisha Marsay, prosecuting, said one of the men was also wearing a black jacket, camouflage trousers and black gloves.
A review of camera footage from the front of the house showed the same person passing the property and paying attention to the vehicle parked outside.
He left, but returned a short time later with an accomplice, entering the property momentarily, before leaving and driving the vehicle away, down Sunderland Road, towards Durham city centre.
Defendant David Appleton was identified by an officer as one of the intruders and he was followed by police in a pursuit on May 8.
One of the occupants of the car was seen to be wearing blue jogging bottoms and Appleton was arrested, while wearing such clothing, after a further chase, in a different vehicle, on Sunderland Road, at 10.40pm that day.
He was searched and found to be in possession of a black balaclava and black gloves.
It was established that he was banned from driving at the time, and, therefore, not insured.
But he remained silent during his police interview.
The 27-year-old defendant, of The Moorlands, Durham, admitted burglary, taking a vehicle without the owner’s permission, driving while disqualified and without insurance, at the court, on Monday (June 8), having previously denied the offences.
His previous convictions featured similar offences, for which he was jailed for 18 months and given a 27-month driving ban, in April 2024.
Judge Aisha Wadoodi said given the time the defendant and his accomplice were seen entering the premises, “there was a real risk” of a possible encounter with one of the householders.
She imposed a 22-month prison sentence of which the defendant is likely to have to serve either 40-per cent, or up to half, before being released on licence.
Appleton was also banned from driving for a further 23 months.
Durham burglar and car taker starting latest prison sentence
Olsi Halili
An Albanian man caught tending a cannabis farm in Chilton worth up to £73k faces possible deportation.
Olsi Halili,was found trying to hide outside the terraced home after police forced entry on May 13.
The court was told a large metal shutter prevented access to the rear of the address in West Chilton Terrace.
The officers had to force the front door, which was wedged shut from behind, but, upon entry, they found a relatively large well-equipped cannabis cultivation operation in the upstairs rooms and in the loft.
In all, 88 cannabis plants at different stages of growth were recovered, with an estimated sale value of between £24,000 and £73,000.
An officer vaulted the boundary wall at the rear of the property to bypass the shutters and managed to get access to the house via a door that was found ajar.
In a search, the defendant was found hiding near a metal gate next to a parked van.
Upon his arrest he told an officer: “I’m not a criminal. They forced me here.”
Halili denied that a phone found at the house belonged to him, but the defendant was able to leave the property via the back door using a makeshift handle.
Taken into custody, he made no comment to police.
Mr Sayers said UK police records have no record of the defendant.
Halili, 38, of no fixed abode, admitted a single charge of production of a class B drug.
Ralf Xhepa, in mitigation, said the defendant came to this country illegally seeking to make a better life for himself, but upon arrival had nowhere to stay and was looking for work.
He was given the property in question as a place to stay on instruction he looked after it and the plants, but there were no discussions about payment.
Recorder Mark McKone said he considered the defendant played, “an operational function” within a chain, albeit “a lesser role”.
He imposed a six-month prison sentence but said he could not suspend it due to the defendant’s immigration status.
Recorder McKone told Halili he would be released on licence after serving either 40 or 50 per cent of the sentence, and it would then be a matter for the Home Office as to what then happens to him, including potential deportation.
The Recorder also ordered forfeiture and deprivation of the seized cannabis plants and growing equipment.
Illegal Albanian immigrant tended Chilton cannabis grow
Callum Garbutt
A drunken teenager stabbed a vulnerable neighbour while rummaging around his home probably looking for items to steal, a court heard.
Callum Garbutt thrust a kitchen knife twice into the abdomen of the 59-year-old victim who has learning difficulties and suffers with language, hearing and mobility issues.
The court heard the householder was sleeping at his Spennymoor home when there was a banging on the door and window, on December 14, 2024.
He feared the caller, the defendant Garbutt, would put the window out due to the force of his banging.
Garbutt asked to be allowed in, and was duly let in, before wandering around the house as if looking for things to steal.
The victim formed the impression that Garbutt, whose mother’s home was nearby, had been drinking all day.
When Garbutt returned to the room where the complainant remained, he pushed him to the floor, before inflicting the stab wounds with a large kitchen knife, then leaving the property.
Helen Towers, prosecuting, said the victim suffered two small incision wounds to the left side of the abdomen which caused some internal bleeding.
Garbutt was identified as having been present through a forensic lift from a beer bottle found at the property and from matching footprint links.
When he was spoken to by police, the victim was very upset and expressed concerns the defendant might come back and was watching him.
Garbutt was arrested and, in his police interview, claimed he had not been in the victim’s property for about a year and denied having attacked him in any way.
When the forensic results were put to him at a later interview he maintained his right to silence.
Garbutt, then aged 19, now 21, of Catherine Close, Spennymoor, who had no convictions at the time of the incident, admitted wounding with intent at a plea hearing in April.
The court heard he has since been convicted of burglary offences.
Recorder Mark McKone said it was clear the victim is “extremely vulnerable” and could not stand up for himself or protect himself.
“I have to emphasise, you stabbed him not once, but twice to a very dangerous part of the body.
“You could easily have killed him and be facing a life sentence.”
Imposing a 45-month prison sentence, the Recorder told Garbutt he would have to serve half behind bars before being released on licence.
Spennymoor teenager stabbed neighbour twice in his own home
Mark Kirkbride
A joiner left his partner “walking on eggshells” and "made her life a misery" with his violent outbursts and oppressive behaviour.
Mark Kirkbride’s domineering, controlling behaviour was said to have made the lives of his long-term partner and their children a misery.
The court was told that up to October 2022 he had been in a relationship with the same woman for 24 years, during which they had six children.
It was accepted his behaviour became steadily worse over the last seven years, from about 2015 onwards.
After one dispute, he punched her in the buttocks just as she received a call from her mother, who heard her crying and contacted the police.
Officers attended their home in the Stanley area, but no action was taken.
Chris Morrison, prosecuting, said a month later, however, the victim did come forward to report Kirkbride’s course of behaviour.
Mr Morrison said this included one incident where the defendant swung a door in her direction, cutting her face and causing a black eye, and another where he pushed her down the stairs.
When police came to the home on October 14, 2022, they found five cannabis plants, worth around £2,000, being grown by the defendant.
The officers also recovered cannabis worth £130, considered to be for personal use.
When interviewed, he agreed he could be “moody and argumentative” and admitted he had struck his partner on the bottom while, in his aggressive states, his family would have been treading nervously around the home.
Mr Morrison said it was “prolonged, volatile behaviour”, causing a fear of violence on many occasions.
Despite previous denials, with a trial listed for February next year, Kirkbride, 47, of Woodside Grove, Tantobie, near Stanley, changed pleas and admitted controlling and coercive behaviour in a relationship plus assault causing actual bodily harm, at a hearing on May 15.
He previously admitted production of a class B drug.
Recorder Mark McKone told Kirkbride that his behaviour has had a “devastating effect” on his now ex-partner’s family life.
Imposing a total 28-month prison sentence, Recorder McKone said it was, “just too serious to suspend."
“Your partner was the victim of serious domestic violence over many years and your violence and controlling behaviour made her life a misery.”
The Recorder also put in place a four-year restraining order prohibiting the defendant from approaching or contacting his ex-partner.
Domineering Stanley man jailed for controlling and coercive behaviour
Jordan Hodgson and Shanelle Craggs
Shanelle Craggs was armed with a large craft-type knife when she broke into the home in Condon Grange near Bishop Auckland in the early hours of October 13 last year while Jordan Hodgson waited outside to assist in her getaway.
The court heard the homeowner woke and saw Craggs a few metres away from the bedroom door and shouted at her, telling her to get out.
She ran off and the householder chased her to the back door where he recognised her, Lucy Todd, prosecuting, said.
Miss Todd said the Craggs was holding the blade and shouting: “Come at
me, come at me” to the householder, before running off.
The burglary victim then saw Hodgson in the rear yard and so ran back into the house to get his phone, before returning to the yard.
Craggs had, by that stage, disappeared, but Hodgson was climbing over the fence, before making off.
On returning to the house, the victim noticed a number of drawers had been opened and the lock was damaged on the back door.
It was found in the back yard with the key still inserted.
When he checked around the house, he noticed tobacco and his wallet had been taken.
Miss Todd said police were called and found both defendants nearby and they were arrested.
Both 29-year-old Hodgson, of Addison Street, Coundon Grange, and Craggs, 22, of Wesley Street, Eldon Lane, admitted burglary at different court appearances in recent months, having initially both denied involvement.
He imposed a 33-month prison sentence on Hodgson and passed a 28-month sentence on Craggs.
Both were also made subject of a five-year restraining order, prohibiting communication or contact with the victim of the burglary.
Couple jailed for burgling neighbour's home near Bishop Auckland
Darren Oxley
A Darlington rapist with an "explosive temper" will spend the next 30 years behind bars after breaking one woman's jaw and leaving another with missing front teeth.
Darren Oxley, 53, left all three women deeply mentally scarred by his actions as a much younger man.
The court heard that while he has been able to move on with his life, all three of his victims are trying to cope in the aftermath of the traumatic offending.
Despite his denials, Oxley, of St Thomas Court, was convicted by a jury of a total of 20 charges following an 11-day trial at the court in March.
They were six offences of rape, three of indecent assault, two of unlawful wounding and nine of assault causing actual bodily harm.
Judge Nathan Adams said with each of his victims, the defendant displayed examples of, “extreme violence, both physical and sexual.”
He told Oxley: “While you have moved on with your life in the intervening period, being described as ‘helpful’ and ‘kind’, that is not what you were like when you were younger.
“These women have not been able to move on with their lives.”
Imposing consecutive sentences for the offences on each victim, totalling 30 years, the judge said it would have been 39 years but for the principle of “totality”.
The defendant must serve two-thirds of the sentence in custody before being released on licence.
Given the length of the sentence the judge did not think it necessary to put in place restraining orders or make Oxley subject of a Sexual Harm Prevention Order.
But he will be subject to registration as a sex offender for life.
Ashley Wardell
A would-be robber armed with a six-inch blade left hotel workers terrified after he demanded a chef hand over money from the safe.
Staff at the Devonport Hotel in the village of Middleton One Row near Darlington locked themselves in the staff room after Ashley Wardell entered the kitchen at 6.50am on January 29 this year.
The court heard Wardell's face was partially covered by a hood and he was armed with a 15cm-long knife, held across his chest.
Neil Jones, prosecuting, said the defendant confronted the head chef, saying: “I want your money. I want your float. I want your safe.”
The chef ran to the manager’s office and shouted to her to ring for the police.
Hotel personnel present locked themselves in the staff room while awaiting the police and Wardell left empty-handed.
He was recognised by officers viewing the hotel's CCTV and when they went to arrest him he was washing clothing matching the garments worn by the would-be robber.
Mr Jones said the defendant had only been released from his previous prison sentence, for a non-dwelling burglary and affray, nine days earlier.
Wardell, 32, of Pine Tree Grove, Middleton St George, who has in custody since his first appearance before magistrates, on January 31, admitted attempted robbery at the plea hearing last month.
Imposing a 60-month (five-year) prison sentence, Judge Edward Legard told Wardell he will serve half in prison before being released on licence.
He also made the defendant subject of a five-year restraining order prohibiting him from contacting or communicating with the hotel manager.
Wardell is also forbidden from attending either the hotel or The Front, in Middleton One Row, also for five years.
Marcus Jones
A sick predator set up a "rape tomorrow" alarm before carrying out a "terrifying" attack on a woman in Bishop Auckland shop toilets.
The court heard that despite being strangled to the point of near breathlessness, the brave young woman fought off her attacker, 21-year-old Marcus Jones, before running from the toilets and alerting shop staff.
Jones fled the premises and claimed he was immediately filled with remorse, messaging his partner to confess to what he had just done, saying he wanted to kill himself.
Harry Crowson, prosecuting, said it appears to have been a planned attack as the defendant was found to have condoms in the bag he had with him that day.
He had also made online searches on his phone for material connected to “rape, lust fantasy” and, also, set up alarm reminders, “rape tomorrow”.
Jones, now 22, of Beddow Court, Witton Park, admitted four offences arising from the incident.
He pleaded guilty to false imprisonment, intentional strangulation, attempted sexual assault and assault by beating.
The court heard that Jones had, initially, denied there was any sexual element to the attack.
But with a trial listed last month he pleaded guilty six days before the hearing.
Read next ... more court stories from The Northern Echo, by clicking here
Darlington rapist with 'explosive temper' jailed for 30 years
Man with knife demanded cash from Devonport Hotel in Middleton One Row
Sick predator carried out 'terrifying' attack in Bishop Auckland
Imposing a 45-month prison sentence, Judge Legard said Jones would serve up to half before being released on licence, less the time spent on remand.
He also made the defendant subject to restraining orders prohibiting him from contacting or communicating with his victim or going to the store in question, both for ten years.
Jones must also sign the Sex Offenders’ Register indefinitely.
Share