[Ammi]

A teacher who had sex with a 16-year-old pupil was spared jail yesterday because a judge said the girl had groomed him.

Stuart Kerner took the child’s virginity in a school store cupboard and later had intercourse with her at his home when his wife was out.

But yesterday the 44-year-old was given only an 18-month suspended sentence after the judge indicated her sympathy for him.

'There is no evidence that you groomed her,’ said Judge Joanna Greenberg QC. ‘It was she who groomed you and you gave into temptation when you were vulnerable.’

Her decision sparked public complaints and the Attorney General’s office last night announced the sentence will be examined to see whether it is too lenient

John Carr, a leading Government adviser on online child safety, described the judge’s actions as bizarre.

‘I haven’t seen all the evidence the judge did but I doubt I will be alone in finding her remarks utterly baffling,’ he said.

‘How can a 44-year-old man be seduced by a minor who is in his care?’

Holly Dustin, of the End Violence Against Women Coalition, said: ‘Judge Greenberg’s reported comments in sentencing Stuart Kerner are astonishing in that they literally blame the young victim for his actions.

‘This case shows how such deeply held prejudicial attitudes permeate the criminal justice system at all levels and raises serious questions about the adequacy of judicial training on sexual violence.’

A spokesman for the Attorney General’s office said: ‘The office will now ask prosecutors to send us more information on this case, so that one of the law officers can decide whether the sentence should be referred to the Court of Appeal for review.’


During his trial at Inner London Crown Court last month, Kerner claimed the girl had invented their relationship, taking the novel Fifty Shades of Grey as a model.

But the former vice-principal of Bexleyheath Academy in south-east London was convicted of two counts of sexual activity with a child while holding a position of trust.

Jurors were told Kerner, who taught RE and ethics, took to carrying around a condom for use if the girl became ‘too irresistible’. On the day in February 2012 that they first had sex they met in the store cupboard and barricaded it shut with a chair

That October, Kerner arranged for the girl to come to his house and they had sex before he dropped her home. He was arrested three months later. The victim, who cannot be named for legal reasons, had told a teacher about their affair after her parents found sexually explicit material on her phone.

Interviewed by police, the girl, who is now 19, said: ‘It felt special. But, I dunno, it wasn’t really. And admitting that does kind of hurt.’

Judge Greenberg described the victim as intelligent and manipulative and said the jury had not judged her a reliable witness.

She said the girl had persuaded the school to give her free meals by falsely claiming her mother would not give her lunch money.

The teenager also claimed to have been in a car crash and wore bandages for weeks before teachers discovered she was lying.

When confronted, she allegedly said: ‘That’s what I do – I lie.’

The judge said Kerner had been in a position of ‘emotional instability’ when they first had sex because his wife had just had a miscarriage.

She added: ‘The victim pursued you and had formed an attachment for you which was not something you had encouraged. Her friends described her, accurately in my view, as stalking you. There is no doubt that she was obsessed with you. An obsession that she had harboured for a long time.

‘I saw no sign that you had encouraged [the victim] in any way. Were it not for her obsession with you, the offence would never have occurred.It’s a tragedy that somebody like you committed offences of this nature and now fall to be sentenced.’

But she added: ‘You are the responsible adult and it is up to you to show restraint.'

Protesting his innocence, Kerner had said the girl was a pathological liar and fantasist who had followed him around ‘like a bad smell’.

He claimed she had been able to describe his house accurately because she had seen pictures of it on his Apple iPad. And he said she knew what underwear he wore because he had once changed for a panto and left his clothes on view.

Edward Ellis, mitigating, said Kerner’s relationship with his ‘devoted’ wife Katharine had become stronger. He said the teacher collapsed following his conviction by a majority of jurors and had considered suicide.

Kerner, from Aylesford in Kent, was cleared of other counts of sexual activity. He has been banned for life from working with children and will have to sign the sex offender register indefinitely. His teaching contract was terminated in October.

Another campaigner, Jan Macleod of the Women’s Support Project, described his suspended sentence as shocking. ‘What it says to me is that there’s a real lack of understanding about the nature of grooming,’ she added. ‘Grooming is all about power dynamics.

‘In any case, the teacher definitely has a responsibility to say “No”, no matter how eager the child is. The criminal justice system needs to look more at the impact of this kind of thing – it involves a huge breach of trust.’



http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/arti....html#comments

[Nedusa]

She's a wicked young 19yr woman, grooming that poor vulnerable 44 yr old professional teacher.

Shame on her for tricking that Middle aged fat balding man into having sex with her and forcing him to have to endure repeated physical encounters with her firm lithe young body.

She should definitely go to prison for this, poor man may never recover from these sexual attacks.





.

[GypsyGoth]

The judge must have been friends with the teacher.

[user104658]

This is a tragedy, he didn't even want to do it. He was being responsible. He wore a condom at all times just incase he happened to trip and fall and land inside a pupil's vagina. You can't really fault the guy.

... Being more serious, teenagers who pathologically lie and seek attention with things like faking injury and being sexually suggestive to adults generally do so because they ARE emotionally vulnerable. OK he didn't initiate it and he wasn't the one to pursue it, but he clearly took advantage of that vulnerability, in my opinion. He's not a "paedophile" or a "rapist" but he certainly is a dirty old bugger and crucially, he is weak and unable to resist temptation and shouldn't be working around young girls.

RE and ethics indeed.

[Ammi]

Originally Posted by Toy Soldier

This is a tragedy, he didn't even want to do it. He was being responsible. He wore a condom at all times just incase he happened to trip and fall and land inside a pupil's vagina. You can't really fault the guy.

... Being more serious, teenagers who pathologically lie and seek attention with things like faking injury and being sexually suggestive to adults generally do so because they ARE emotionally vulnerable. OK he didn't initiate it and he wasn't the one to pursue it, but he clearly took advantage of that vulnerability, in my opinion. He's not a "paedophile" or a "rapist" but he certainly is a dirty old bugger and crucially, he is weak and unable to resist temptation and shouldn't be working around young girls.

RE and ethics indeed.

..and everybody working in a school/every single teacher knows that these are the very most vulnerable and at risk children...

[Z]

They were both clearly vulnerable people and the judge and jury seemed to agree that the young girl was the one who pursued and initiated the relationship. He's not a paedophile or a rapist but he shouldn't be working around children - right verdict IMO.

[kirklancaster]

It is time for a complete review of the British Justice System because the judiciary is steeped in corruption.

It is no joke that we have the 'Best Justice System Money Can Buy' but lack of wealth is not the only reason a working class person will often never secure true justice while ever there is no diversification within our justice system, because, let's be honest; how equitable can a judicial system really be, which is so heavily reliant on judges drawn from the upper echelons of society to interpret often archaic laws which were originally drafted by people from the very same upper echelons of society, to protect people from the very same upper echelons of society?

Nowhere is 'the old boy's network' more in evidence than among our judiciary, and nowhere are the values and prejudices which were forged in the Public School system, more consistently irrelevant to the majority of people which the British Judicial System is supposed to serve.

There is a definite bias among a lot of the judiciary towards 'White Collar' criminals against working class victims, and vice versa, and this seems to be reflected in this case of 'Teacher' against 'Pupil'.

Similarly; very often, perpetrators of crimes against property involving theft and robbery, are dealt with more severely than perpetrators of crimes against people involving assault, and even murder.

A lot of barristers have often personal links with certain judges and benefit from unjust but well cloaked partiality, whilst other barristers - often young and not from the same public school background - are visibly intimidated by certain judges no matter how ethical such barristers may be.

There have been many notable and controversial instances of totally perplexing decisions by our judiciary, but for the most part, the majority of unjust rulings pass unnoticed; usually where one solitary judge presides alone in court cases where a barrister faces a 'Litigant in Person' - a member of the public representing themselves. Here, judges are answerable to no one and often blatantly ignore precedents and other laws, and unjustly prejudge the case before passing unfair verdicts with 'leave to appeal' refused.

This being so, this Judge's absurd comments and sentencing comes as no surprise.

The above is my personal opinion.

[Niamh.]

Is Ken a judge now?

[kirklancaster]

Originally Posted by Niamh.

Is Ken a judge now?

He couldn't be any worse than a lot of them.

[Cherie]

This is incredible, he had a duty of care, from a female judge as well

[arista]

Originally Posted by Niamh.

Is Ken a judge now?

No he is busy
selling story to press and TV


This Judge view of this young girl as a Minx


But never Fecking mind that
He is Guilty

Adult Fecking Child girl

[arista]

Originally Posted by Cherie

This is incredible, he had a duty of care, from a female judge as well

Yes she goes to Orgy Partys

[Niamh.]

Originally Posted by arista

No he is busy
selling story to press and TV


This Judge view of this young girl as a Minx


But never Fecking mind that
He is Guilty

Adult Fecking Child girl

Yep, especially since he was a teacher as well. Those comments from the judge were despicable

[arista]

Originally Posted by Toy Soldier

This is a tragedy, he didn't even want to do it. He was being responsible. He wore a condom at all times just incase he happened to trip and fall and land inside a pupil's vagina. You can't really fault the guy.

... Being more serious, teenagers who pathologically lie and seek attention with things like faking injury and being sexually suggestive to adults generally do so because they ARE emotionally vulnerable. OK he didn't initiate it and he wasn't the one to pursue it, but he clearly took advantage of that vulnerability, in my opinion. He's not a "paedophile" or a "rapist" but he certainly is a dirty old bugger and crucially, he is weak and unable to resist temptation and shouldn't be working around young girls.

RE and ethics indeed.

so what he is weak
Put him in prison - it will help him

This is common place in USA as well

[Ammi]

Originally Posted by Z

They were both clearly vulnerable people and the judge and jury seemed to agree that the young girl was the one who pursued and initiated the relationship. He's not a paedophile or a rapist but he shouldn't be working around children - right verdict IMO.

..do you mean the right sentence, Z..?../not verdict...

[Kizzy]

I don't think this judge understands what grooming means.... :/

[Northern Monkey]

He obviously should'nt be a teacher if he can't resist a 16 year olds advances.It was his job to stay professional and not put himself in any situation where he might be alone with her.Can't really say what the sentence should've been because i don't know what that charge would carry as she was beyond the age of consent.The judges comment though,Ridiculous!If that was my daughter i'd be very angry with this teacher.

[Z]

Originally Posted by Ammi

..do you mean the right sentence, Z..?../not verdict...

Yes, sorry.

[Niamh.]

Originally Posted by EyeballPaul

He obviously should'nt be a teacher if he can't resist a 16 year olds advances.It was his job to stay professional and not put himself in any situation where he might be alone with her.Can't really say what the sentence should've been because i don't know what that charge would carry as she was beyond the age of consent.The judges comment though,Ridiculous!If that was my daughter i'd be very angry with this teacher.

mmhmm the correct thing for him to do would have been to inform the principle that this girl was making passes at him straight away. that's what a responsible teacher would do imo

[Northern Monkey]

Originally Posted by Niamh.

mmhmm the correct thing for him to do would have been to inform the principle that this girl was making passes at him straight away. that's what a responsible teacher would do imo

Yeah you're right.What would they do though?Kick her out of school or move her to another class or something?I think the only option would be to take her out of that school.If she was that obsessed with him she'd more than likely still find a way to follow him around.

[Kizzy]

It's really common for girls of that age to develop a crush on teachers he should have made people aware and no acted on his urges.

[Crimson Dynamo]

Dirty old pervert is a dirty old pervert

[GiRTh]

Jurors were told Kerner, who taught RE and ethics, took to carrying around a condom for use if the girl became ‘too irresistible’.

I used to work for a charity who worked with disadvantaged youths in my city. The Male youth workers had no end of stories about girls trying to hit on them.

This man is nothing but a pervert and lacked the self control to be around vulnerable teenage girls if he really thinks there's any kind of defense to say the girl was 'to irresistible'. No mater how much the girl concocted stories and lied he had a duty to look after her safety and not fulfill his own sexual desires.

Lock him up and put him on a sex register.

[arista]

Originally Posted by GiRTh

I used to work for a charity who worked with disadvantaged youths in my city. The Male youth workers had no end of stories about girls trying to hit on them.

This man is nothing but a pervert and lacked the self control to be around vulnerable teenage girls if he really thinks there's any kind of defense to say the girl was 'to irresistible'. No mater how much the girl concocted stories and lied he had a duty to look after her safety and not fulfill his own sexual desires.

Lock him up and put him on a sex register.

He is on that now
and can never work near children

[Livia]

She's still considered a child at 16? And they're thinking of giving 16 year olds the vote? How does that work out...?

Having said that, he's a teacher and should have known better.