Saville victims - Official Report

[davieG]

BBC - http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-20981611

Children as young as eight were abused by Jimmy Savile, a report detailing 50 years of allegations has revealed.

The joint Metropolitan Police and NSPCC report added Wheatfields Hospice in Leeds to the list of places where the former TV presenter abused children.

Some 214 crimes were recorded across 28 police force areas, including 34 of rape or penetration, the report said.

Police said it was a "compelling picture of widespread sexual abuse by a predatory sex offender".

The Department of Health said the report showed the need to "learn lessons from his crimes".

Revelations that Savile had sexually abused children prompted hundreds of other victims to come forward, including those who said they were attacked on BBC premises.

The former BBC presenter and Radio 1 DJ died aged 84 in October 2011, a year before the allegations emerged in an ITV documentary.Historical abuse

Friday's report, Giving Victims a Voice, set out what Scotland Yard and the NSPCC have discovered about Savile since they launched the inquiry - Operation Yewtree - three months ago.

The 30-page document expanded on allegations that Savile was a prolific sex offender whose abuse took place at a number of institutions identified by victims.

Its findings included:

• Savile offended at 13 hospitals, including Great Ormond Street in London, and one offence was recorded at Wheatfields Hospice in Leeds in 1977
  
• His youngest victim was an eight-year-old boy, and the oldest was 47
  
• The earliest allegation is from 1955 in Manchester and the last in 2009
  
• Offences were carried out at the BBC between 1965 and 2006 - including at the last Top of the Pops recording
  
• Peak offending took place between 1966 and 1976
  
• Some 73% of victims were under 18
  
• Most of those abused were aged 13 to 16
  
• There is "no clear evidence" he operated in paedophile ring, although "whether he was part of an informal network" is still being investigated
  

The report also revealed 16 offences were committed at Leeds General Infirmary between 1965-1995 and 22 at Stoke Mandeville Hospital between 1965-88.

And one offence was committed at Broadmoor high-security psychiatric prison, St James Leeds Hospital, High Royds Psychiatric Hospital, Dewsbury Hospital, Wycombe General, Great Ormond Street in 1971, Ashworth Hospital, Exeter Hospital, Portsmouth Royal Hospital, St Catherine's Birkenhead, and Saxondale Mental Health.

The Crown Prosecution Service also published a review of a decision in 2009 not to charge Savile with sexual offences in relation to four complaints made to police in Surrey and Sussex.

It found there was "nothing to suggest" the decisions were "consciously influenced by any improper motive on the part of either the police or prosecutors".

Continue reading the main story

Jimmy Savile inquiries

• Operation Yewtree Scotland Yard criminal investigation into sexual abuse claims against Savile and others linked to the presenter
  
• BBC investigation led by former Sky News head Nick Pollard into management failures over the dropping of Newsnight report about Savile
  
• BBC investigation led by former Appeal Court judge Dame Janet Smith into corporation's culture and practices during Savile's career and current child protection and whistle-blowing policies
  
• BBC investigation led by Dinah Rose QC into handling of past sexual harassment claims
  
• Department of Health investigation into its own conduct in appointing Savile to lead a "taskforce" overseeing management of high security psychiatric hospital Broadmoor in 1988
  
• Director of Public Prosecutions review into decisions by the Crown Prosecution Service not to prosecute Savile in 2009
  

However, it said further action might have been possible had "police and prosecutors taken a different approach", adding the CPS prosecutor "did not probe... or seek to build a prosecution".

If those coming forward had "been told that she was not the only woman to have complained, they would probably have been prepared to give evidence".

Director of public prosecutions Keir Starmer apologised on behalf of the CPS. He said the report represented a "watershed moment" and pledged to enhance information sharing and provide prosecutors with additional training for the future.

A Department of Health spokesman said: "This report highlights the shocking scale of offending by Jimmy Savile over five decades and shows the need to learn lessons from his crimes.

"When these allegations first came to light the department and relevant trusts started work to investigate these issues, and we expect any new NHS organisations named today to do the same.

"Findings from all trust investigations will feed into the report Kate Lampard will write for the secretary of state on any lessons for the whole system in relation to safeguarding and access."'Cathartic process'

Liz Dux, from Slater and Gordon Solicitors, who is representing many of the victims, said the police inquiry had given them "validity" as many had been able to give their statement for the first time, and had "been believed".

"This has been a very cathartic process for them. Now that the report is out they hope that they can move on to the inquiries, hope that the inquiries are dealt with as swiftly as possible, and that the civil claims will be concluded and that they can get on with the rest of their lives."

The allegations prompted a series of investigations, including three at the BBC and another by the Department of Health into his role at Broadmoor hospital.

Deborah Cogger says she was abused by Jimmy Savile at a children's home, and now feels "believed"

A report by former Sky News chief Nick Pollard into the the dropping of a BBC Newsnight investigation into Savile said the decision was "flawed" and plunged the corporation into "chaos and confusion".

Operation Yewtree has three strands - claims against Savile, claims against Savile and others, and claims against others.

One victim, Deborah Cogger, was abused by Savile when she was aged 14 at Duncroft, an approved school for girls in Staines, Surrey, in 1974.

She said the publication of the report had helped her: "Just to be able to finally be believed - it's not even telling the story - it's being believed.

"I think it's given a lot of people closure, not just the Savile case, abuse in general. Now it's being spoken about, it's been brought to the fore, and for a lot of historical cases it's helped a lot of people."

Speaking to BBC News, Childline founder Esther Rantzen said: "What worries me is, did various organisations - be they hospitals, or the BBC, or other broadcasters - turn a blind eye, turn a deaf ear, in order to protect their product, which was Jimmy Savile the broadcaster?"

Savile was a BBC Radio 1 DJ as well as a presenter of Top Of The Pops and Jim'll Fix It on the BBC, and was knighted in 1990.

[21st Century Fox]

I look forward to hearing DANGEROUSTIGER's take on this.

[Mack]

We've got a monster thread on this elsewhere.

Horrible nonce bastard.

[Fox92]

Sick man. Horrible to read.

Why is he still a 'Sir'?

[Jon the Hat]

Still can't get my head around how he got away with it. Simply incredibly awful.

[Guest Bilo]

Sick man. Horrible to read.

Why is he still a 'Sir'?

I have a feeling that honours can only be awarded posthumously, not rescinded.

If this had come out while he was still alive, he'd have had his knighthood, and possibly bum virginity, removed.

[Vacamion]

Think of other things that have come out in the wash - Robert Maxwell being crooked, Tiger being a shagger, Wayne Brown being in the BNP.

Looking back, it's dead easy to be wise and think ' How did we not know? It was obvious'.

When you see footage of a middle aged bloke with shoulder length blond hair hanging around with kids, it's easy to do it again and say 'Yeah, it was always obvious he was a sex case'.

The sad fact is that it isn't always obvious, even when it should be. That copper who said 'Saville groomed the Nation' had it spot on.

[Guest MattP]

Wayne Brown wasn't 'in the BNP'

[davieG]

We've got a monster thread on this elsewhere.

Horrible nonce bastard.

That's why I started a new one in case anyone wanted to go straight to the link.

[Vacamion]

Wayne Brown wasn't 'in the BNP'

My apologies. I don't know if he was member or not. I do know that it was reported that he announced to teammates that he had voted for them and this caused disharmony in the dressing room.

I stand by the rest of my post.

[Daggers]

Still can't get my head around how he got away with it. Simply incredibly awful.

Spending a lunch every Xmas at Chequers with Thatcher? Sorting out kids for the paedos in her cabinet?

[Vlad the Fox]

People knew it was going on and chose to turn a blind eye. They need to be made to explain themselves.

[FoxesAreBlue]

People knew it was going on and chose to turn a blind eye. They need to be made to explain themselves.

Amongst a few other things... This.

[Parafox]

Sick man. Horrible to read.

Why is he still a 'Sir'?

Because so far these are unproved in a court of law. I think...

I'm pretty sure the title will go.

[Bettsj2]

Another nonce to be revealed tomorrow. Household name. They are a singer apparantly.

[Jimothy]

Another nonce to be revealed tomorrow. Household name. They are a singer apparantly.

Where's that rumour come from? Can't see anything on the rumour mill that is Twitter. Is another 70/80's star?

[Webbo]

Another nonce to be revealed tomorrow. Household name. They are a singer apparantly.

Who was it?

[Bellend Sebastian]

Free the paedos! Well, not quite.

http://touch.latimes.com/#section/-1/article/p2p-74025506/