• Skip to main content
  • Skip to secondary menu
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
  • About DNS
  • Subscribe to DNS
  • Advertise with DNS
  • Support DNS
  • Contact DNS

Disability News Service

the country's only news agency specialising in disability issues

  • Home
  • Independent Living
    • Arts, Culture and Sport
    • Crime
    • Education
    • Employment
    • Housing
    • Transport
  • Activism & Campaigning
  • Benefits & Poverty
  • Politics
  • Human Rights
You are here: Home / News Archive / Families’ anger over CPS abuse case ‘incompetence’

Families’ anger over CPS abuse case ‘incompetence’

By John Pring on 31st May 2013 Category: News Archive

Listen

theweeksubFamilies calling for an inquiry into the Solar Centre abuse scandal have accused the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) of “incompetence” and “adding insult to injury” by misleading them about the trial outcomes of offences against their disabled relatives.

The families of five service-users from the Doncaster day centre – who all have learning difficulties and high support needs – were already calling for an inquiry into the multiple failures of the criminal justice system, which meant that it took six years for the case to reach trial.

They believe that the repeated failures of police and CPS are symptomatic of the criminal justice system’s continuing failure to take seriously both disability hate crime and the abuse of people with learning difficulties in institutional care.

The successful prosecution of two former Solar Centre nursing assistants earlier this month only came about after Disability News Service brought the scandal to the attention of the director of public prosecutions, Keir Starmer, following two failed investigations by South Yorkshire police and CPS.

Susan Murphy, 44, and another former nursing assistant, James Hinds, aged 59, were found guilty of ill-treatment by a jury at Sheffield Crown Court earlier this month. Hinds was found guilty on 10 of 19 charges, Murphy on 15 of 20 charges. They will be sentenced on 14 June.

Two other former Solar Centre members of staff, Julie Burge and Michael Barnard, were acquitted of all charges against them.

Now two of the families of survivors of the Solar Centre abuse say they are furious with the CPS after it gave them inaccurate information about the outcome of the trial.

The families of Maxine Hughes and Richie Rowe both believed the jury had cleared the defendants of all charges concerning their relatives.

But after receiving fresh information from a journalist on a national newspaper, Adrian Milnes, Richie Rowe’s step-father, was able to confirm with CPS that Hinds had been found guilty of abusing Richie.

A member of CPS staff told him three times that one charge of ill-treatment of Richie Rowe by Hinds had resulted in a guilty verdict.

Two hours later, the same staff member phoned back and apologised, and told Milnes the CPS computer system had not been able to cope with the complexity of the case and the number of charges, and that Hinds had been found not guilty of all the offences relating to Richie.

Milnes said: “Don’t they think we have been through enough without them making any more stupid mistakes?

“To be given the vindication and then to have it snatched away is horrible. It is adding insult onto injury.”

He pointed out that members of CPS staff had also given conflicting information during the trial about other important aspects of the case, which cannot yet be revealed for legal reasons.

Milnes said: “The mistakes are just astounding. It reinforces my initial statement that they obviously thought it was too hard, too difficult to prove, so they would do the absolute minimum.

“Not only are they doing the absolute minimum, they are also casual in their approach. The mistakes are occurring on a daily basis, just as the abuse was occurring on a daily basis.”

Wendy Magill, whose sister Maxine was also abused by Hinds at the Solar Centre, was left in a similar situation to Milnes after being passed information – approved by CPS – which stated that Hinds had been found guilty on a charge of ill-treating Maxine.

She later learned that CPS had made a mistake, and that Hinds had been cleared of that charge.

Magill said: “CPS have been absolutely useless in their dealings with this case. They are just incompetent.

“For an organisation like the CPS to get something like that wrong is gross negligence and incompetence. It shows how seriously they have treated this case.”

CPS has so far been unable to confirm why the incorrect information was passed to the family and to journalists.

30 May 2013

Share this post:

Share on X (Twitter)Share on FacebookShare on WhatsAppShare on RedditShare on LinkedIn
A photograph shows an audience raising their hands in a BSL sign. The words say: 'BSL Conference 2025. The future starts with us. Leeds 17-18 July. Be part of shaping the future of Deaf cultures and identities. Get 10% off with BDA10'

Related

‘Muddled’ blue badge reforms ‘are to blame for renewal delays’
6th February 2015
UN debate will be reminder of true inclusive education
6th February 2015
IDS breaks pledge on PIP waiting-times, as tens of thousands still queue for months
30th January 2015

Primary Sidebar

On the left of the image are multiple heads of different colours - white, aqua, red, light brown, and dark green - all grouped together, then the words ‘Campaign for Disability Justice. Sign up to support. #OpportunitySecurityRespect’
A photograph shows an audience raising their hands in a BSL sign. The words say: 'BSL Conference 2025. The future starts with us. Leeds 17-18 July. Be part of shaping the future of Deaf cultures and identities. Get 10% off with BDA10'

Access

Latest Stories

‘Disastrous’ cuts bill that leaves legacy of distrust and distress ‘must be dropped’

Four disabled Labour MPs stand up to government over cuts to disability benefits

Silence from MP sister of Rachel Reeves over suicide linked to PIP flaws, just as government was seeking cuts

Disabled people receiving care were ‘ignored by design’ during the pandemic, Covid inquiry hears

Disabled activists warn Labour MPs who vote for cuts: ‘The gloves will be off’

GB News says it has nothing to apologise for, after guest suggests starving disabled benefit claimants

SEND inspections find services in just one in four areas usually lead to ‘positive’ outcomes for disabled children

Disabled MP who quit government over benefit cuts tells DNS: ‘The consequences will be devastating’

Disabled peers plan to ‘amend, amend, amend, amend, amend’ after assisted dying bill reaches Lords

Minister finally admits that working-age benefits spending is stable, despite months of ‘spiralling’ claims

Advice and Information

Readspeaker
A photograph shows an audience raising their hands in a BSL sign. The words say: 'BSL Conference 2025. The future starts with us. Leeds 17-18 July. Be part of shaping the future of Deaf cultures and identities. Get 10% off with BDA10'

Footer

The International Standard Serial Number for Disability News Service is: ISSN 2398-8924

  • Accessibility Statement
  • Privacy Policy
  • Site map
  • Bluesky
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • LinkedIn
  • Threads
  • Twitter

Copyright © 2025 Disability News Service

Site development by A Bright Clear Web