Looking back at the stand-out court cases in King’s Lynn and West Norfolk from 2024
It has been another dramatic year in Lynn Magistrates’ Court, with offenders from across the borough and beyond winding up in the dock for all sorts of offences.
In the first part of a special report, we take a look back at some of the stand-out cases from 2024.
Featuring everything from drug-drivers and thieves to child abusers and people posting dead animals, here are the courtroom highlights from January to June…
JANUARY
At the start of the year, the Lynn court heard about a father and son who assaulted two pub staff members and a police officer during a drunken argument.
Danny and Tyler Goodson both pleaded guilty to assault by beating, while Goodson Snr, 38, admitted an additional charge of assault by beating of an emergency worker.
Their offences were committed during an incident at the Wetherspoon beer garden in Lynn, with the father ordered to pay more than £1,500 in total.
Meanwhile, Goodson Jnr, aged 18, was also fined following what was described as a “very unhappy incident”.
Later in the month, an 82-year-old who was caught with more than 1,000 indecent images of children escaped jail.
Brian Butterfield, of Blackford in Reffley, was placed on the sex offenders’ register after admitting three counts of making indecent photographs of a child.
Butterfield, who is retired and receives a pension, made 82 Category A photographs and 84 Category A videos of children – the most serious – in 2021.
The pensioner was handed an 18-month community order requiring him to complete up to 25 Rehabilitation Activity Requirement days, while he was also made the subject of a Sexual Harm Prevention Order and given a fine.
FEBRUARY
One of the year’s most shocking cases took place in February, when the court heard that a woman had sent a dead pig’s head in the post as part of a neighbourhood feud.
Samantha Shaw, of Sporle, had posted the farm animal body part – as well as fragments of dead birds – to a woman she used to call a friend.
“Words can’t express the damage this has done,” the victim said.
Having heard a wealth of details about the case, magistrates decided to impose a two-year restraining order which prevents Shaw contacting the victim in any way.
Meanwhile, the court heard about a man who had hidden a key in his underwear which opened a safe with cocaine stored inside.
Hunstanton man Joseph Rutherford admitted possession of a Class A drug, and was fined £120.
During a police search which led to his arrest, officers uncovered the key - which in turn led them to 2.2g of cocaine.
MARCH
The following month, Lynn resident Alexander Thompson was in the dock for harassment after making multiple phone calls to his ex-partner.
He made a total of 20 calls to her saying that they should not have broken up. He later accused her of posting about their break-up on Facebook.
Thompson also emailed the victim’s mother via a work email, asking to apologise to the victim and say how much he loved her, and was caught with a bunch of flowers he intended to give her.
He was given a 12-month restraining order, with orders not to contact the victim or go to her address, and was fined.
Later in the month, Zoe Leake, from Fairstead, was sentenced for punching a community centre staff member after they told her children to keep the noise down.
She was at Gaywood Community Centre for a private function when she committed the offence, following which she was escorted from the premises.
Solicitor George Sorrell explained that Leake thought the victim was being “unnecessarily strict” with her children.
However, having pleaded guilty to assault, she was handed a conditional discharge.
APRIL
More than a quarter of the way through 2024, 35-year-old Kirsty Mills was jailed after assaulting a woman twice and then attempting to gouge her eyes out.
The victim’s eyes were red and she had visible cuts and bruises after the incident, and also had pain in her ribs.
Mills also assaulted a police officer while being arrested, as well as committing a raft of other offences.
Magistrates handed Mills, who lives in Lynn, 32 weeks in custody.
In a quirky case, the court heard about two thieves who stole hundreds of pounds worth of clothes from a garden centre because it was raining.
William Connors, 34, and Michael Connors, 40, had pinched the jackets and shirts from Fakenham Garden Centre.
The clothes taken were worth a combined £529.93. Only some of them recovered, with £311.32 worth unaccounted for.
In court, they were fined £200 apiece, and ordered to pay £155.66 each in compensation for the stolen items.
In mitigation, solicitor Andrew Cogan said it was raining on the day of the offences, and the weather contributed to the defendents’ decision to steal.
“It appears to have been raining constantly in Norfolk since last year. This day was no different,” he said.
MAY
As the summer approached, 24-year-old Imogen Cronin was ordered to pay compensation after entering a random home while drunk in the belief it was her own.
She had been drinking in Feltwell and was attempting to return to her house when she inadvertently ended up in a stranger’s address.
To make matters worse, she then proceeded to damage the back door when leaving.
“As a result of alcohol, she lost her mind,” solicitor George Sorrell said.
Cronin was ordered to pay £100 in compensation and court costs of £50.
North Pickenham man Ryan Digby was also fined, and handed a restraining order, after referring to his former mother-in-law as a “dirty little troll”.
He was sentenced for two counts of sending an offensive message through public communication.
The court was told that Digby had previously been in a relationship with the victim’s daughter.
When it came to an end, her mother sent a text to Digby asking him not to contact her any further.
However, Digby replied using “foul and abusive” language and called her a “f*****g dirty little troll”.
JUNE
The Wisbech man had 800mcg of benzoylecgonine, a cocaine breakdown, per litre of blood. The legal limit to drive is 50mcg.
“I shouldn’t have been carrying my son like that - it makes me feel sick when I think back to it,” he said.
Magistrates disqualified Harvey from driving for 16 months, and fined him £120.
She pleaded guilty to stealing a Hello Fresh parcel and assaulting an emergency worker, and was ordered to complete an 18-month community order and a mental health treatment programme.
The food parcel - worth £25 - had been left by a front door, but was stolen “without hesitation” by Makhakhe before a neighbour had the chance to take it in.
While officers were trying to arrest her, she wrapped her legs around a living room table and bit one of the officers on the arm.
In mitigation, solicitor Alison Muir said that Makhakhe has “severe mental health issues” - but was seeking help from Lynn-based charity Change, Grow, Live.
The courtroom highlights from July to December will be published in the coming days…
