Couple jailed for child abuse released early, causing distress for victims and raising questions about justice.
The couple cared for children long ago, with the abuse happening in their Darlington home. Victims later reported awful treatment. Lorna hit kids for not doing chores well and scrubbed one child with a rough pad in the bath.
One time, she dragged a girl by her hair after the girl had a haircut at her mom’s. Lorna pushed the girl in the bath, then slapped her face. Another girl who could not finish dinner was made by Lorna to eat it off the floor, even though the girl had been sick. A child once dropped a cup, and Lorna made all the kids line up and slapped them until someone confessed.
Christopher watched and did nothing. One victim said social workers visited, but he felt he could not speak up then. He knew he would be beaten badly after. Lorna slapped him if his room was messy. Violence started when he was only five. He came home wet from playing aged 12, and Lorna smashed his face against a door.
At 16, he ran away, leaving with nothing at all. Christopher mismanaged a trust fund left by his dad, £58,000 reduced to only £1,000. Christopher did odd jobs for a plumber. In 2022, they were jailed for one year each for child cruelty that lasted 11 years. Christopher also admitted to fraud.
Lorna’s lawyer said in court that Lorna has a personality disorder. Christopher’s lawyer called him vulnerable and said he struggles with stress. Later, the sentences seemed too short, and a court increased them both. A legal officer welcomed the longer terms, saying they reflected the harm caused.
Lorna is on license until 2027. Christopher’s license ends in 2028. One victim is shocked by their release and cannot know where they live. This is for the couple’s safety, and he wants to avoid them, naturally.
He feels angry and out of control. He got a call from a new worker he never spoke to before, who said Lorna was freed. She would not say where they are, for their own protection, and he is upset about that. Lorna hurt him a lot, he said.
He called her hateful, remembering he was just a boy back then. His mom could not care for him, and his dad had died, he explained. His mental health is bad now because they are out of prison and free, giving him nightmares and sweats. When they were jailed, he knew where they stayed.
Christopher did not hit him until 15. During that year he fought back. Lorna cornered him in the kitchen then, and he thought she wanted to kill him, so he hit her in the face. He has scars all over his body. His hands have marks from a photo frame that broke when she threw it, cutting up his hands, which are now visible. A vase broke on one arm too.
He got beaten if he talked back. When he was 13, she choked him and punched his face repeatedly, with his back against a door. They stopped him from seeing his mom, who could not care for him because she was unwell, and this lasted twelve long years.
He could not stop Christopher’s waste either. Christopher bought a new car then, a Skoda that cost £20,000. Dennington said he bought things for the boy instead. When 16, Christopher’s mom moved in, giving him the chance for escape. His grandma had Alzheimer’s, maybe, but she unlocked the windows for him. One night, he climbed out of it.
Christopher locked them up at night, stopping them from escaping. The teen fled to a friend’s house, then went to his sister, and then he reported the abuse immediately. He is still mad they are out early and does not understand it at all. He asks why the government freed them and says he got no real justice.
The Ministry of Justice made a statement now, saying they know release news hurts victims. They are sorry the victim feels let down. Offenders on license must follow rules, including curfews and zones away. They go back to jail if they break them.