Tyne Tees Peterlee News

One of our region's Olympians competes in the first round of his event this morning. Alan Wills grew up in Peterlee and now trains in Penrith. He's competing in the qualifiers for archery at Lords.

• Sport
• Peterlee
• Olympic

The sister of a woman who killed her two year old son before driving his body to Peterlee police station has spoken out about the need for greater awareness of mental health issues. Julie Stout was talking on This Morning on ITV1.

Melanie Ruddell killed Christy less than 24 hours after her family took her to hospital concerned about her behaviour. She was later diagnosed as having acute psychosis, which impared her judgement and made her believe her son was in danger.

• Health
• Peterlee
• County Durham

The Liberal Democrats went down to a landslide defeat in County Durham in the latest council by-elections.

Labour's Jimmy Alvey gained a seat at Peterlee West on a shift of more than 36%, while overall the Lib Dems slumped from first place in the 2008 main polls to a poor third, in one of biggest swings since they formed the coalition Government with the Conservatives.

The poll results for Peterlee West:

• Labour 767
• Independent 181
• Liberal Democrats 99
• Conservative 47

• UK
• Peterlee

It was an assault on a prisoner in a police station that's been compared to torture. Two members of Durham police were today fined after subjecting a man with a heart condition to unlawful and excessive force in custody.

The assault by Sergeant Stephen Harvey and civilian officer, Michael Mount, was filmed on CCTV. Both officers have been fined.

• UK
• County Durham
• peterlee

• UK
• County Durham
• peterlee

• UK
• County Durham
• peterlee

Two members of Durham police have been fined, after an assault on a prisoner that's been described as 'torture'. The police watchdog has condemned the attack by custody sergeant Stephen Harvey and civilian officer Michael Mount at Peterlee Police Station last year.

• UK
• County Durham
• peterlee

Two police staff members who assaulted a prisoner by twisting and pulling his arms have been ordered to pay him compensation.

David Healer shouted in pain as he was questioned by police custody sergeant Stephen Harvey, and detention officer Michael Mount at Peterlee police station in March 2011.

The Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) has condemned the incident as 'torture'.

Both Harvey, 50, and Mount, 61, were convicted of two counts of assault at Teesside Magistrates' Court in March, and have now been told to pay Mr Healer £50 each in compensation.

Harvey was also ordered to pay £1,345 in fines and costs. Mount was told he must pay £680 for his role in the attack.

Harvey and Mount had claimed they used reasonable force to restrain Mr Healer, who refused to answer basic questions such as confirming his name.

The 48-year-old, from Seaham, was being questioned after his arrest on suspicion of breaching bail conditions and assaulting a police officer. He says he was suffering an angina attack at the time.

• UK
• County Durham
• peterlee

An Irish motorist has been jailed for 12 years for the manslaughter of a County Durham man in a road rage attack.

Construction worker Raymond Bates died in hospital four days after being beaten around the head with a hurley stick in a south Dublin suburb on September 26 2010.

Karl Donohoe, who pleaded guilty to manslaughter, was jailed at the Central Criminal Court in Dublin.

His victim, a father of three from Peterlee, Co Durham, was working in Ireland as a quality control inspector on a gas pipeline at the time of the attack.

• UK
• peterlee