South Tyneside Magistrates' Court Sentencing Results

Joshua Collins, 24, was stopped while driving southbound on the A19 at Hylton Bridge on Friday, July 3, 2026, by officers who wanted to question him about an unrelated matter. Officers noticed a smell of alcohol and that he appeared under the influence. He refused to take a roadside breath test and also refused to provide a sample after being arrested and taken to a police station. The unrelated matter led to no charge.

Police attended a Sunderland flat on Saturday, March 14, 2026, after a third-party CCTV report. A distressed woman was seen downstairs and a man was on the sofa. Carl Bell jumped out of a cupboard, intoxicated and aggressive, and tried several times to get out of the flat. He refused to be handcuffed, grabbed an officer's vest and attempted to pull her to the floor. PAVA spray was ineffective, and an officer withdrew her Taser and issued a warning before Bell calmed slightly, though he was still resisting as handcuffs were applied.

Daniel Jenkins attended the victim's home address in breach of a court-imposed restraining order in the early hours of February 14, 2026. Police were called after an argument and found him at the property at around 2:15am. The victim withdrew an assault allegation. Jenkins made no comment in police interview and pleaded guilty to breaching the restraining order.

Lewis Shaw was seen driving a red Audi on the A185 near the Tyne Tunnel at Jarrow on 21 November 2025. Officers followed the vehicle to a supermarket car park, where he initially gave a false name. Checks showed the person he claimed to be was not on the insurance policy, and he then admitted his true identity. He had been banned from driving for 18 months in August 2025 for drug driving and pleaded guilty to driving while disqualified and driving without insurance.

On 6 March 2025, waste identifying Cheryl Gough of Fuller Road was found at a fly-tipping incident on Fuller Road in Hendon, Sunderland. She was served a formal notice to attend an interview with Sunderland City Council's Community Safety team but did not attend or provide a reasonable excuse, ignored further notices and warnings, and failed to appear in court.

Stacey Loughlin, of Hastings Street, was served a formal notice to attend an interview with Sunderland City Council's Community Safety team regarding fly-tipping incidents in the Hendon area captured on CCTV between November 2024 and January 2025. She did not attend or provide a reasonable excuse, ignored further notices and warnings, and failed to appear in court.

Toni Steele, of Hastings Street, was served a formal notice to attend an interview with Sunderland City Council's Community Safety team regarding fly-tipping incidents in the Hendon area captured on CCTV between November 2024 and January 2025. She did not attend or provide a reasonable excuse, ignored further notices and warnings, and failed to appear in court.

Penn Elcom Limited failed to ensure the health, safety and welfare of employees and visiting workers by not having suitable and sufficient measures in place to prevent falls from height during loading and unloading operations at their site in Washington. On November 18, 2024, the victim, a 65-year-old driver employed by Dobbs Logistics Ltd, suffered a brain injury and multiple fractures after falling from an HGV trailer while manually moving cages during the loading process. One wheel of a cage became stuck, causing the cage to fall and the victim to step backwards off the trailer. An investigation by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) found that if HSE guidance had been followed, the risks could have been identified and eliminated by changing how the work was done.

Meachem had a beer after finishing work at about 11pm on 25 August and later agreed to give friends a lift home from Sunderland at about 3.30am the next morning. He was stopped by police in The Royalty and gave a positive alcohol reading. He pleaded guilty to drink driving.

Philip Peacock threw bricks at his sister's home while her eight-year-old child was inside, attempting to smash a £500 window. The bricks bounced off and no damage was caused. A family member came outside and confronted him. Peacock had also harassed his sister between 10 and 17 October. He is alcohol dependent and has mental health issues.

Phillip Padgett stole almost £6,000 worth of goods during 33 shoplifting raids across Sunderland and South Tyneside. He was sentenced to 40 weeks in prison.

Ely failed to stop anti-social behaviour at his rented home despite promising police he would. He allowed two misbehaving friends into the property and the noise led a neighbour to call police on 1 May. He failed to intervene or assist police on their arrival. The charge of failing to comply with a community protection notice was proved in his absence.

Burnett was upset by a householder's comments towards his sister and retaliated by throwing a stone at a window in Roker Avenue, Sunderland on 12 August. He admitted criminal damage and received a 12-month conditional discharge.

Thew verbally abused a woman three years after she made a hurtful remark following his father's death. On 16 April he urged the woman to 'go to Switzerland to kill yourself' and made further insults the following day. He pleaded guilty to harassment without violence, failing to comply with a community protection notice and possession of a class B drug.

Linda Hall struck an 81-year-old pedestrian in a congested shopping centre car park shortly before Christmas. The incident occurred at Silverlink Retail Park in North Tyneside on 22 December 2025 at around 5pm. Hall was driving her Renault Captur at under 5mph and pulled out after checking both directions but failed to see the pedestrian, who was crossing near a Marks and Spencer store. The victim was knocked down and trapped beneath the vehicle, suffering severe pelvic injuries and died the following day. Hall, a business support manager who had recently become a grandmother, was said to be deeply traumatised. Security footage confirmed she was driving at low speed, and a blind spot may have contributed. The judge said the victim had done nothing wrong and that Hall had led a blameless life.

On 26 August, Matthew Jobb drove through a red light on a slip road of the A19 dual carriageway at Jarrow and collided with another vehicle at about 5pm. He did not stop and drove for 15 minutes with the other motorist in pursuit. When he came to a standstill he smelled of alcohol, and a breath test showed he was almost three times the drink-drive limit.

Paul Catley operated an ‘end of life’ vehicle waste activity and deposited waste without a permit between January 2017 and September 2018 at Bolden Lane in South Shields, South Tyneside. End of life vehicles contain fuels and oils classed as hazardous waste. He ignored advice and guidance from the Environment Agency, failed to co-operate in the investigation, and continued the unlawful business, putting the environment and communities at risk and gaining commercial advantage over legal operators.

Paul Conway was detained on another matter at Rainton Meadows Industrial Estate near Houghton-le-Spring on Friday, March 20, 2026. A search of a van linked to him uncovered a small quantity of cocaine and cannabis. He pleaded guilty to two counts of possession of a controlled substance and one of failing to surrender to custody. He was homeless and had no previous drug matters recorded.

Horn was convicted in August 2025 of assaulting a police officer and criminally damaging a car in Kingsland Square, Downhill, Sunderland. He later breached a community order by failing to maintain contact with probation officers and was jailed for eight weeks for wilful and persistent failure to comply with the order.

Daniel Elliott breached a 12-month non-molestation order by going to his mother's home on September 5, 2026, where he swore and threatened to kill her in front of her partner. The order had been imposed in June after domestic-related incidents and prohibited him from visiting her home or harassing her. He had also breached the order earlier in June by visiting a pizza takeaway near her home. He was recorded on a mobile phone, pleaded guilty to breaching the order, and was sentenced to a community order.

Allan Briton was stopped by police on 22 October 2024 in Forest Road, Ford Estate, while driving his daughter's car to his father's funeral. The vehicle was flagged as having no insurance, and he immediately admitted being a disqualified driver. The court heard he had two previous convictions for driving while disqualified and without insurance, including a suspended sentence in 2015 and a 12-month disqualification imposed in December 2023.

Andrea Tulip, 40, of no fixed address, was jailed for 18 weeks after a six-day shoplifting spree in Sunderland.

Austin Fitzgerald was a director of a company that allowed an illegal waste site to operate on land in Sheffield without an environmental permit. The Environment Agency first visited in 2022 and found mixed waste including fridges, electrical items, soil and stones. Despite advice and formal notices requiring clearance, further waste accumulated. Complaints were made about burning of waste in late 2024 and early 2025. Fitzgerald said he inspected the site regularly, but waste remained in April 2025.

Owens was originally convicted of dangerous driving and drink driving and sentenced in July 2025 to a 32-week jail term suspended for 18 months. He admitted breaching the suspended sentence by failing to attend scheduled rehabilitation appointments earlier this year. Magistrates increased the suspension period to 24 months and imposed a £400 fine and £60 costs.

Ian Poveda was caught speeding at about 100mph in a 70mph zone while driving a black Range Rover on the A184 in South Tyneside at around 8.45am on 23 February 2025. A police officer saw the vehicle accelerate away and signalled for it to stop; Poveda pulled over immediately.

James Kilpatrick, 31, crashed his Ford Fiesta into a parked car on a road in Hebburn soon after daybreak on Saturday 8 August, pushing it into a third vehicle, then fled on foot. When police found him he was over twice the legal alcohol limit and in possession of a knuckle duster. He had been driving without a licence, insurance or a valid MOT. The owner of the parked car said the incident caused family difficulties in visiting a terminally ill relative in hospital. Kilpatrick pleaded guilty to drink driving, driving without insurance, driving without a valid MOT and possession of an offensive weapon in public.

Jonathan Collier, 24, threatened his sister with a kitchen knife in front of her son at her home in Sunderland on August 13. He had been banned from the property but was let in after asking to charge his mobile phone, before revealing he had taken cocaine and balloons during the night. He grabbed a kitchen knife and began walking up the stairs towards his sister, waving the blade and causing her to fear for her and her son's safety. He was arrested soon afterwards.

Jordan Sherwood held a bread knife to his own throat in a street in High Southwick on 26 February 2026. Police officers attended and persuaded him to lower the knife; he complied when told to put it down. He pleaded guilty to possession of a bladed article in public and failing to surrender to custody on 18 March 2026. He had six previous convictions from eight offences, the last in 2021. He indicated he would not engage with any community penalty and wanted a prison sentence.