Friday, June 28, 2013

Anti-social pensioner facing jail after telling neighbour she was ugly-looking

A problem pensioner with a criminal record the length of “War and Peace” is facing jail after he told a female neighbour she was ugly-looking. Richard Dawe, 79, breached a restraining order banning him from being anti-social when he launched a verbal attack on Barbara Wilkes, 56, who lives next door to him. Dawe has a string of ASBOs, including one for singing ‘Oh What A Beautiful Morning’ and Tom Jones’ classic ‘Delilah’, at the top of his voice outside his neighbour’s houses.



He has also sworn at his neighbours, attacked one with a shovel and made peacock noises to annoy a woman who he claimed played her radio too loudly. His bizarre hate campaign against his long-suffering neighbours in the pretty village of Castlemorton Common, Worcestershire, dates back to 1998. Last year Dawe, who once claimed he was the ‘Godfather of Caslemorton’, was jailed for six months after he was caught throwng clumps of mud and stone at his neighbour’s window.

But he was back before the courts just two months after being released when he was charged with breaching an anti-social behaviour order which was imposed on him on October 2004. The court heard the breach occurred on June 12 and 14 this year when he made “offensive comments” to Mrs Wilkes. Prosecutor Mark Johnson told Worcester Magistrates Court Dawe had a case file the size of “War and Peace”. He said: “The two parties (Dawe and Mrs Wilkes) hate each other. That’s not an over-exaggeration.



“The substance of the allegation is that the defendant has addressed two offensive comments to a neighbour. On one occasion he said ‘Oh my God, you’re ugly-looking’ before swearing at the woman and on the other he made a lewd remark about her.” Dawe initially denied two breaches of his ASBO but changed his mind and pleaded guilty, telling magistrates he had no “reasonable excuse” for his behaviour. Dawe was remanded into custody and will be sentenced at Worcester Crown Court on July 1.

5 comments:

Gareth said...

Proof, if proof were needed, that ASBOs don't work. And while we're at it proof that the aged do not automatically deserve respect.

Anonymous said...

Is there more to this than what it written? Why are police called when someone just calls them a name? I only see two charges in the lot that should have received attention.

Anonymous said...

At least he didn't sing "Feelings."

Lurker111

Anonymous said...

Doesn't anyone find it disturbing that a man is being repeatedly put in jail for nothing more than being an asshole? Seriously? Everybody's cool with that? BECAUSE I'M NOT.

Gareth said...

I think the anonymous posters (grow a pair people and use your name) above don't know what an ASBO is. An Anti-Social Behaviour Order is an order issued by magistrates to somebody to cease and desist repeated anti-social behaviour, usually where that behaviour is causing distress. It's not unlike the restraining orders found in some legal systems.

Just like with most court orders breaching an ASBO is a criminal offence. It's breaching the ASBO that got this idiot in jail.

However ASBOs don't usually work. The reason for this is simple. A reasonable person in receipt of such a court order would probably cease and desist. The problem is of course that a reasonable person would no doubt have ceased way before things got to court. As such ASBOs are generally only issued to unreasonable people who ignore the order.