Man jailed after Poole police officer mauled by dog
In a victim personal statement read by a barrister, PC Moreland-Francis said the assault was the worst in his 15-year career.He said his wounds, which needed surgery, had left him with scars and nerve damage, while the trauma had given him sleepless nights.In police body-worn camera footage, which was played in court, the officer repeatedly asked Willis to put the dog back into the car.The animal then attacked him for several seconds, causing the policeman to fall to the ground howling in pain before repeatedly firing the Taser.Willis, who pleaded guilty to failing to control a dog that caused injury in public, denied actively setting the animal on the officer.However, he accepted that he should have intervened rather than fleeing, the court heard.The dog was found three days after the attack and was put down, police previously said.Judge Jonathan Fuller KC said Willis was in breach of two community orders and had previous convictions for drug dealing and assaulting a police constable.He said: "This was an awful attack by a Staffordshire-type cross terrier, which are intimidating dogs and capable of causing even more serious harm."Anyone listening to the video of the officer screaming in pain and fear would recognise the seriousness of what that dog did and you allowed it to do."He disqualified Willis from driving for 55 months.
You can follow BBC Dorset on Facebook, X, or Instagram.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Sun
19 minutes ago
- The Sun
Repair Shop host Jay Blades charged with two counts of rape and faces court next week a year after quitting hit BBC show
REPAIR Shop star Jay Blades has been charged with two counts of rape. Police confirmed the allegations against the 55-year-old dad of three from Shropshire. 4 4 Blades fronted the hit BBC show for seven years before stepping back last year. King Charles appeared alongside him on a special episode in 2022. West Mercia Police confirmed charges against the dad of three, with a magistrates' court date set for next Wednesday. A spokesperson said: 'Jason Blades, 55, of Claverley in Shropshire, has been charged with two counts of rape. "He is due to appear at Telford magistrates' court on 13 August 2025.' Blades was awarded an MBE in 2022 for services to craft while King Charles appeared on the Repair Shop the same year. The TV star is currently awaiting trial on a separate charge of controlling and coercive behaviour against estranged wife Lisa-Marie Zbozen, which he has denied. Blades was arrested in May 2024 - on the same day fitness instructor Lisa announced her decision to end their 18-month marriage. In September Blades was charged. His actions allegedly caused Lisa 'to fear, on at least two occasions, that violence will be used against her'. The presenter pleaded not guilty to the charge — which relates to the period between January 1, 2023 and September 12, 2024 — at a court hearing last October. He is due to attend Worcester crown court today for a pre-trial review regarding the charge. Blades, who married Lisa in an intimate ceremony in Barbados in November 2022, took a break from filming following his arrest. Sources said the decision was also linked to the death of his uncle Richard Braithwaite, 72, in North London in March. A neighbour has been charged with murder. Blades was also dropped from The Repair Shop's live show, Secrets From The Barn, and quietly removed from promotional material. His Repair Shop co-star, horologist Steve Fletcher, revealed in March he had visited Blades while on a break from the live tour. Steve shared a photograph of himself with Blades on Instagram with the caption: 'In a break from our 'Secrets From the Barn' Tour, I popped in to see Jay the other day for a cup of tea and a lovely chat. 'It was great to catch up. Hope to see him again soon.' The BBC later replaced Blades with Roman Kemp for the Christmas special of the popular series. Blades also resigned as chancellor of Buckinghamshire New University 'with immediate effect' following the initial charge. It said: 'We thank Jay for his loyal service to the university and will be making no further comment.' As well as fronting The Repair Shop since 2017, Blades also hosted BBC shows including Money For Nothing and Jay Blades' Home Fix. He also appeared as a contestant on the Strictly Come Dancing Christmas special and fronted a special BBC documentary, Jay Blades: Learning to Read at 51. 4 4
The Sun
19 minutes ago
- The Sun
Housekeeper wins unfair dismissal case against dead employer
A HOUSEKEEPER has won a case for unfair dismissal — against her dead boss. Maridel Baltero was on holiday when fired in a text from pioneering teacher Andrea Greystoke in November 2023. 2 A tribunal heard she was offered four weeks pay as notice after working 30 hours a week for ten years at Mrs Greystoke's London home. Ms Baltero started proceedings in January 2024, but her 78-year-old boss died five months later. The hearing in central London was told that Mrs Greystoke — director and founder of independent Abercorn School — had prepared a response to Ms Baltero's allegations. In it she admitted most of the claims and cited 'personality difficulties'. Employment judge Lydia Watton ruled the sacking unfair. "I bear in mind that [Mrs Greystoke] was an individual acting as employer, and I cannot expect her to have a large HR function at her disposal", Judge Watton said. "However, on the evidence before me she did not carry out any investigation whatsoever, let alone a reasonable one. "[Ms Baltero] was not asked about her performance, nor were the issues discussed with her. "I find that [Mrs Greystoke] could have reasonably been expected to wait longer before dismissing [Ms Baltero], at least until she had some form of consultation or performance management with [her]. "I do not find that dismissal was within the band of reasonable responses. I lost 'everything' when UC stopped my £4.3k-month payment... now I've been sacked from my new job "[Mrs Greystoke] had not made any attempt to find out if there were any reasons for the allegedly poor performance, or to warn [Ms Baltero]." Compensation from Mrs Greystoke's estate will be set later. 2
Daily Mail
19 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
Teacher, 56, who was dubbed 'Islamophobic' after labelling Lucy Connolly's prison sentence as 'two-tier policing' hits out and says he is fighting to clear his name
A teacher who was branded 'Islamophobic' has revealed it is now 'very difficult to find another job' after two Facebook friends reported him for a post criticising Lucy Connolly's prison sentence. Simon Pearson, a former employee of Preston College, was subject to an internal investigation following his comment that Connolly 'should not have been jailed'. Connolly, the wife of a Conservative councillor, had been handed a 31-month sentence in October after pleading guilty to a charge of inciting racial hatred in a social media post following last year's Southport riots. The post, which the 42-year-old later deleted, said: 'Mass deportation now, set fire to all the f****** hotels full of the b******* for all I care... if that makes me racist so be it.' In his online comment, Mr Pearson described Connolly's words as 'obviously wrong', but said he believed her prison sentence was a 'two tier policy from the top down'. Speaking to GB News, the 56-year-old this evening said he 'very much' agreed his free speech had been 'violated'. Mr Pearson explained: 'I've served at Preston College for 20 years - I've served my students faithfully, I've been defending their rights as well from whatever race, from whatever religion. 'I've demonstrated to the college as well that they have no basis in their actions and unfortunately they dismissed me.' Pictured: Mr Pearson's Facebook post that eventually resulted in his dismissal. Preston College's investigation deemed the post a violation of its policies, damaging of professional relationships and likely to bring the college's reputation into disrepute The teacher said he had stated Connolly's post was 'appalling' and 'indefensible' - but also that she had deleted it soon after and 'obviously didn't mean what she said'. Mr Pearson added: 'Policing social media is awful for our country - it has been for me; being labelled Islamophobic has made it very difficult for me to find another job. And it's not true. 'You should be able to express what you really believe - what is of concern in society - without fear of recrimination.' He clarified it had not been his Union that made the report but in fact 'two people who were on my Facebook friends (list)'. 'They were the ones who'd told the Union what I'd written and through the Union they brought that to the college,' he said. Mr Pearson concluded: 'It's a travesty really and that's why I'm fighting to clear my name.' An internal investigation was launched following a complaint submitted by a Muslim representative of the National Education Union (NEU) at the school who alleged that the post was 'Islamophobic' and 'racially discriminatory'. Mr Pearson said that following the concern, he apologised and also claimed to have provided evidence of his support for both Muslim students and asylum seekers. Simon Pearson, a teacher at Preston College, has said he fell victim to an unfair 'witch hunt' which resulted in his dismissal from his position at Preston College after he publicly criticised Lucy Connolly's (pictured) prison sentence However, the college's investigation deemed the posts a violation of its policies, damaging of professional relationships and likely to bring the college's reputation into disrepute. Mr Pearson previously said he had been left 'appalled' by the decision, particularly given his long-standing commitment to helping support and educate students 'from all walks of life'. Describing his dismissal as a 'grave injustice', he told The Telegraph: 'As soon as I was branded "Islamophobic" for expressing concern about violent crime, I became a marked man. 'It was clear that I had to be found guilty by the college, it became a witch hunt, and I had to be eliminated no matter what.' Mr Pearson, who has now launched legal action at an employment tribunal, has claimed wrongful dismissal, unfair dismissal, harassment and discrimination under the Equality Act 2010. Lord Young of Acton, founder of the Free Speech Union, told the Daily Mail he was 'shocked' by the decision to sack Mr Pearson, criticising the NEU (National Education Union) for 'siding with the bosses rather than the workers when it comes to breaches of workplace speech codes'. It comes after Connolly, of Northampton, was sentenced at Birmingham Crown Court in October and imprisoned at HMP Drake Hall, Staffordshire after admitting to making her 'racist' post on X, formerly known as Twitter. The 42-year-old former childminder, wife of Conservative councillor Ray Connolly, lost her 19-month-old son, Harry, in 2011. With around 9,000 followers on X at the time, Connolly's message was reposted 940 times and viewed 310,000 times before she deleted it around three and a half hours later. The mother-of-one was arrested on August 6 last year, by which point she had deleted her social media account. But other messages which included other condemning remarks were uncovered by officers who seized her phone. Her X post was made just hours after killer Axel Rudakubana murdered three young girls and attempted to murder 10 others at a Taylor Swift-themed dance class on July 29, sparking nationwide unrest. A number of public figures and politicians have spoken out since Connolly was handed her sentence, claiming that she is a victim of 'two-tier justice'. Connolly's husband, Raymond, a former West Northamptonshire Conservative councillor, said on the day she lost her appeal: 'Justice Secretary Shabana Mahmood says she will release 40,000 prisoners, some of them dangerous men on tag. 'Lucy has not been allowed out on tag and she has been denied leave to see our child who is struggling. 'The court had the opportunity to reduce her cruelly long and disproportionate sentence, but they refused. That feels like two-tier justice.' Adelle Healy, 42, who has been friends with Connolly for nine years, previously told the Daily Mail: 'Lucy was horrified and heartbroken that three little girls had been murdered. She let her emotions take over and wrote something that she definitely shouldn't have done but she has paid a very dear price. 'She should not be behind bars for a tweet. I think it's ludicrous that it's got to this point.' In May, Connolly lost an appeal to shorten her 31-month sentence despite telling the Court of Appeal in London she 'never' intended to incite violence and did not realise that pleading guilty would mean she accepted that she had. Meanwhile, earlier this week, The Daily Mail revealed a friend of Connolly had shared a post to X saying she believed the convict would be 'with a glass of Whispering Angel in-hand' this time next month. It is understood Connolly will be released on August 21. The National Education Union said in a statement: 'The management of Preston College reached a decision to dismiss the teacher following disciplinary procedures. 'The NEU was not directly involved in these processes and it will be for the Employment Tribunal to consider the fairness of the dismissal if and when the claim reaches a hearing.' Preston College added: 'Upon receipt of complaints from a number of our staff, an internal investigation was undertaken into whether some of Mr Pearson's social media posts were a breach of the College's Staff Behaviour Code and Values. 'Following an investigation and subsequent disciplinary process, Mr Pearson was dismissed from his employment at the College.'
