Further sexual abuse convictions for those in positions of trust – News stories examined

Two recent cases have come to our attention which highlight adults abusing positions of trust in order to abuse young people.

Firstly, 36 year-old Christopher Latimer has been jailed for two years for multiple child sex offences and been issued with a 10-year Sexual Harm Prevention Order.

Latimer was a caretaker at the victim’s school and also a leader at the Scout Group his victim attended.

Latimer had been sending messages to a boy for two of three years and eventually started to send sexually explicit messages. He pleaded guilty to engaging in sexual communication with a child, causing a child to watch a sexual act and causing or inciting a child to engage in sexual activity.

The police officer involved noted that Latimer had abused his position of trust in order to build a relationship with the boy, commenting that: “He was well aware of the age of the boy he was talking to and ignored several safeguarding practices when committing these offences”.

The offences only came to light in May 2021 because a friend of the boy raised concerns.

The second case was that of a former Cadet Leader from Sussex, who has been convicted of sexually abusing teenagers at Portsmouth Crown Court.

Simon Taplin, age 64, was found guilty of two counts of indecent assault on a person under the age of 16. He had been charged with a total of 7 counts, and whilst he was found not guilty on some charges, the offences he was convicted of were serious enough to merit a prison sentence of four and a half years.

It is reported that Taplin used his position as Cadet Leader to facilitate the abuse. He is also required to sign the sex offenders register for life. The earliest offence took place in 1996.

The Detective Constable involved in the case thanked the victims who came forward, stated: “I hope that any victims of sexual abuse are encouraged to come forward to report any crime or wrongdoing. We will investigate no matter how long ago it was.”

These cases highlight several key issues that we encounter regularly in civil claims for compensation:

• That it is never too late to take action where sexual abuse has occurred – Both the criminal and civil courts recognise that it may take many years for sexual abuse to be disclosed. Even though you did not complain at the time, you will be taken seriously. Despite there being time limits for bringing civil compensation claims, the law does enable the courts to allow claims to proceed many years out of time.
• Whilst the case of Taplin involved historic abuse, the first case happened very recently and reminds us that child sexual abuse is still a huge problem, even with increased safeguarding measures and public awareness. This case also highlights how the use of mobile phones and other technology has created greater opportunities to abuse.
• Grooming and abuse of a position of power by those working with children and young people – We see this in many of our cases and have successfully recovered damages for those abused in similar situations, whether it be the Cadets, Scouts or other youth groups.

Who would I claim against in these circumstances?

The Cadets are run by The Army Cadet Force (ACF) and where a leader/senior member has abused someone in the course of their cadet role, the Organisation can be held automatically liable for their actions.

So, while the police and CPS would prosecute the individual, we would look to recover damages from the ACF. In the case of a Scout Leader, we would look to claim against the Scout Association.

if you have been affected by any form of historic physical or sexual abuse, please contact our team at Oakwood Solicitors today to discuss it further in complete confidence.

Further reading

Historic abuse claims – Oakwood Solicitors

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