JUDGE BLASTED FOR LETTING PAEDO WALK FREE
JUDGE BLASTED FOR LETTING PAEDO WALK FREE A PERVERT who sexually assaulted two young girls on an allotment, telling them he was brushing spiders off them, has walked free from court – because jailing him was ‘unfair’ on his family. The victim’s family have blasted Judge Mark Lucraft for being ‘too lenient’ and ‘living in cuckoo land’ for handing Gary Karn a suspended sentence. The 48-year-old from Norwich was found guilty of three counts of sexual assault against a child under 13 following a three day trial, in which the seven and eight-year-olds had to give evidence. Karn inappropriately touched the girls as they picked raspberries from bushes at his allotment last September. He told them he was brushing spiders off them but was found out after one of the girl’s told their mother that he had put his hands down their trousers and up their tops. But rather than jailing him, Judge Lucraft suspended Karn’s 18-month sentence for two years and banned him from working with children for five years. He was also ordered to carry out 200 hours of unpaid work and was given a five-year sexual offences prevention order. Karn asked for six counts of possession of extreme pornography to be taken into consideration, arising from DVDs found at his house during a police search, and a single count of possession of indecent photographs of a child. Yet Judge Lucraft, who was sitting at Norwich Crown Court last week, said an immediate jail term would unfairly affect Karn’s family. He said: “I have to consider the impact on them: people who are not in any way at fault yet might suffer serious hardship from your actions.” It followed mitigation whereby Karn’s offences were described as ‘opportunistic’ by the defence. Jude Durr branded the incident as a ‘moment of madness’ and said a prison sentence would punish Karn’s family as much as him. “Imprisonment will almost certainly lead to him losing his job. If he loses his liberty and they lose their house, that would have pretty dev
Other great stories
IN FLIGHT MEAL
This is the amazing moment two white-tailed kites take an in-flight meal - exchanging prey at 100 foot high in mid air .
WORLD’S MOST BLINGED-OUT CAR
FEAST your eyes on the £500K coin-covered Range Rover that could be the world’s most blinged-out car .
BROTHER SEXUALLY ABUSED ME AGED 6 AND TOLD ME HE'D GET CANCER IF I DIDN'T LET HIM
Sophie Carr, 23, from Swindon, was just six when her older brother Alex, then 12, abused her during a game of mummies and daddies .
AMAZING LIGHTNING PHOTOGRAPHY
STRIKING photos capture nature at its most raw and powerful during Earth’s most electrifying event .
SLEEPING IN THE MOONLIGHT
With the full moon looming behind him, this polar bear nestles down for the night .
ICELAND'S 360 DEGREE VIEW WATERFALL
THESE BREATH-TAKING photographs show the natural beauty of Iceland's most famous waterfall .
BIG FOOT 'JESUS BIRD'
THIS BIGFOOT 'Jesus bird' may look silly, but he's perfectly designed for walking on water .
JEAN- IUS DIET: 24ST MUM LOSES 12ST THANKS TO JEANS DIET
A mum-of-three lost half of her body weight after her daughter was teased by playground bullies for having a 'fat mum' .
PAWS FOR THOUGHT: POLAR BEAR RELAXES IN SNOW
STARING intently into the camera, a polar bear appears to be lost in thought while relaxing in the snow .
BULLY HUBBY LEFT ME SCARRED FOR LIFE AFTER HEAD-BUTTING ME IN THE EYE FOLLOWING DREAM WEDDING
Lauren Kilgariff, 29, was with husband, Shaun, 31, for four years .
PRAIRIE DOG AND STARLING STAND-OFF
This starling and prairie dog will not back down an inch as they have a fearsome stand-off over who gets to eat a nut .
ADORABLE BEAR CUBS SHARE A HUG
ROLLING around in the snow, these young brown bears take a break from their play fight to share a tender hug with one another .