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LEWES CROWN COURT
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Lewes Crown Court is a Crown Court in Lewes, East Sussex, England. It is housed in the Lewes Combined Court Centre along with Lewes County Court in the High Street in Lewes.
Lewes Crown Court
Woman jailed for false rape claim - 15/11/2006
A teenager whose false rape allegations led to an innocent man spending 10 weeks in prison has been jailed for six months.
Katie Davis, 18, had consensual sex with Frank Chisholm after meeting him on the street after a night out, but invented a story about being raped in an alleyway when she feared she may become pregnant.
Mr Chisholm, 24, spent more than two months in prison on remand until scientific evidence revealed no crime had been committed.
Sentencing at Lewes Crown Court, Judge Richard Brown said Davis' "wicked lies" had, and would continue to have, a "dramatic affect" on her victim's life.
Davis, from St Leonards, East Sussex, showed no emotion as she was sentenced to spend six months in a young offenders' institute. She was found guilty of perverting the course of justice after a week-long trial last month.
The jury heard how the charges against Mr Chisholm were dropped after fibres found on Davis' fleece showed it had come into direct and prolonged contact with the duvet cover of his bed.
Davis, 16 at the time of the allegations, had claimed never to have been in his house.
When confronted with the scientific evidence she refused to change her story, and was also unable to explain two witness sightings of her walking up her street with Mr Chisholm's arm round her before the alleged attack.
James Eaton, defending, said Davis had learnt her lesson despite failing to confess to her lies, and said the case had "knocked her family for six".
In a witness impact statement read after the verdict, Mr Chisholm described being charged with rape as "like a nightmare that will never end".
He said he now finds it difficult to leave the house and is wary of the company of girls.
Lewes Crown Court interior
F.A.C.T.
(Falsely Accused Carers and Teachers)
Guidance
for education staff and volunteers in schools
Partners called in teacher trial - Wednesday, 21 January, 2004
Two former boyfriends of a teacher killed in a "bizarre and macabre sexual fantasy" have told a court they had "normal" relationships with her.
Graham Coutts, 35, is alleged to have strangled Jane Longhurst and then stored her body in a cardboard box after viewing a number of websites dedicated to sexual violence against women.
It is alleged he killed the 31-year-old at his Brighton flat.
Her burning body was found on 19 April 2003, five weeks after she disappeared.
Jane Longhurst's body was found five weeks after she disappeared
'Too upsetting'
Lewes Crown Court heard on Wednesday from Miss Longhurst's former boyfriend Lincoln Abbotts.
He told the jury they had a "normal" sex life and had never discussed asphyxia or strangulation.
In a written statement another ex-boyfriend, Michael Downe, said they also had a normal sexual relationship and had never spoken of bondage.
The court also heard how Mr Coutts broke down in tears when questioned about the death of the special needs teacher by police.
The part-time salesman and musician was said to have told detectives "it's too upsetting".
When asked directly if he killed Jane Longhurst, he said: "I don't want to talk about it."
For much of the police interview he sat in silence failing to answer questions, the court was told.
Lewes Crown Court heard from computer crime investigator David Reed who said he found more than 5,000 images on two computers taken from Mr Coutts' home.
Most of the images were of ordinary pornography, but 473 showed women being strangled and asphyxiated, while six of them were of what appeared to be dead women, he said.
Lewes is a local government district in East Sussex in southern England. It is named after its administrative centre, Lewes. Other towns in the district include Newhaven, Peacehaven, and Seaford. Plumpton racecourse is within the district.
The Roy Whiting murder trial was a high profile case heard at Lewes Crown Court.
Lewes Combined Court Centre
Tel: 01273 480400
DX
97395 Lewes 4
Work
Type - Civil
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Contacts
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Court Manager : Mr D. Manning |
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Deputy Court Manager : Mrs D. Phipps |
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Customer Service : Mrs D. Priest 01273 229200 |
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Witness Service : Miss A. Hannibal |
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Bailiff Manager : Mr P. Hooker |
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Jury Officer : Ms B. Pemberton |
Further Information
General Contact Numbers
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Switchboard : |
01273 480400 |
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General Fax : |
01273 485269 |
Opening Times
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Court building open : |
9.00 am |
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Court building closed : |
5.00 pm |
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Court counter open : |
County Court - 10.00 am, Crown Court 9.00 am |
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Court counter closed : |
County Court - 4.00 pm, Crown Court 5.00 pm |
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Barcombe
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Beddingham
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Chailey
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Ditchling
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East Chiltington
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Falmer
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Glynde
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Hamsey
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Iford
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Kingston near Lewes
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Lewes
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Newick
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Peacehaven
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Piddinghoe
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Plumpton
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Ringmer
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Rodmell
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South Heighton
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Southease
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St Ann Without
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St John Without
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Streat
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Tarring Neville
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Telscombe
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Westmeston
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Wivelsfield
| Geography | |
|---|---|
| Status: | District |
| Region: | South East England |
| Admin. County: | East Sussex |
| Area: - Total |
Ranked 157th 292.00 km˛ |
| Admin. HQ: | Lewes |
| ONS code: | 21UF |
| Demographics | |
| Population: - Total (2004 est.) - Density |
Ranked 238th 93,300 320 / km˛ |
| Ethnicity: | 97.9% White |
| Politics | |
| Lewes
District Council http://www.lewes.gov.uk/ |
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| Leadership: | Leader & Cabinet |
| Executive: | Liberal Democrats |
| MPs: | Norman Baker, Desmond Turner |
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