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Jury discharged in trial of disgraced former police sergeant




After deliberating for almost 60 hours over the course of 12 days, a jury has been unable to reach verdicts on 14 charges faced by disgraced former Stratford police sergeant Timothy Lively.

Lively (60) of Old School Mead, Bidford-on-Avon, had denied 26 charges, including the alleged abuse of boys as well as girls, dating from the mid-1970s to the summer of 1986.

The jury at Warwick Crown Court has found Lively, who is now a successful businessman, not guilty of nine of the charges in relation to four boys.

But he has been convicted of two charges of indecently assaulting a girl in the late 1970s and one offence of indecency with a child in relation to the same girl.

Lively was not at court when the trial resumed on Tuesday and, following a discussion in chambers, the jury was told by Judge Anthony Potter: “Mr Lively is not here today. He is unwell.”

The judge later had the jury back in court and asked them whether, given longer, and with no pressure of time, they believed they would be able to reach any further verdicts.

And after discussions among themselves, the jury foreman said they would not be able to do so.

So Judge Potter told them: “After approaching almost 60 hours, in the light of the indication you’ve given me, I’m going to discharge you from returning any further verdicts.

“You have returned 12 verdicts in relation to the allegations, and while you may harbour some degree of disappointment, please don’t feel a sense of frustration. It’s not uncommon for juries to find themselves in your position.”

After thanking the jurors for their efforts, and excusing them from jury service for ten years, Judge Potter told Lively’s barrister Stephen Vullo QC: “I will want an update as to his health in the near future.”

Asked by the judge whether the prosecution would be seeking a retrial of the remaining counts, prosecutor Rosina Cottage QC indicated: “My instructions are that there is likely to be a retrial.”

But she added: “We will need to speak to the complainants about whether they are willing to come back, so I would be asking for time.”

Judge Potter agreed, and adjourned the case for Lively to attend court and until May 23 ‘for the Crown to indicate whether they seek a retrial, and on which counts.’

During the trial Miss Cottage said Lively had committed the offences he was convicted of at a time when he was a serving Warwickshire Police officer or, before that, a cadet, and also carried out voluntary work at a children’s home.

They had involved him touching the girl’s breasts on a number of occasions, initially when she was under the age of 13, and continuing after she was 13.

In addition, on several occasions when she was aged between 10 and 12, he had forced her to carry out a sex act on him.

The jury’s not guilty verdicts had been on nine charges in relation to four boys Lively was alleged to have abused.

But they were unable to reach verdicts on nine further indecent assault charges he faced in relation to two of those boys and four others, as well as two allegation of having sex with one of them.

They were also unable to reach verdicts on allegations that Lively indecently assaulted two other girls and raped one of them on multiple occasions when she was under 16.

The jury has heard that a complaint was first made in 1986 by a man who alleged he was abused by Lively in the late 1970s and early 1980s.

Although no charges resulted at the time from that man’s original complaint, there was an internal tribunal which Miss Cottage said led to Lively being dismissed from the force in 1988.

Although the jury’s not guilty verdicts included three in relation to that boy, the charges on which they could not reach verdicts included two allegations of indecent assault alleging that he forced the boy to perform a sex act on him.



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