Liberate the Scribbler’s Digest for distant
Roula Khalaf, Scribbler of the FT, selects her favorite tales on this weekly e-newsletter.
Former BBC information presenter Huw Edwards has been sentenced to a six-month jail sentence — suspended for 2 years — and a intercourse perpetrator remedy programme via a London court docket for getting access to indecent pictures and movies of youngsters.
The sentence approach the veteran presenter is not going to grant prison presen except he commits any alternative offences within the later two years.
Handing ailing the sentence at Westminster magistrates’ court docket on Monday, leading Justice of the Peace Paul Goldspring stated Edwards’ “long-earned reputation is in tatters”.
Edwards, 63, used to be the highest-paid newsreader at the United Kingdom nationwide broadcaster when he resigned in April. In court docket, he regarded instantly forward together with his chin resting on his palms because the sentence used to be learn out.
In July, he pleaded accountable to a few fees of creating indecent pictures of youngsters between December 2020 and August 2021, admitting to receiving 41 unlawful footage and movies from a person at the WhatsApp messaging platform.
Seven of the images and movies have been deemed to be Section A, essentially the most severe kind. A number of have been believed to be of a kid elderly between 13 and 15, occasion every other used to be of a kid perhaps as younger as seven.
The prosecution advised the court docket that Edwards had paid about £1,000 to £1,500 in general to Alex Williams, the person who despatched him the photographs, every now and then later receiving the content material. Then again, the pass judgement on stated that he approved the defence’s rationalization that the bills have been extra of a “thank you” in lieu than cost for buying the photographs.
Monday’s sentencing sealed the downfall of Edwards, who fronted the BBC’s flagship Information at Ten programme and led protection of impressive environment and world occasions, together with the funeral of Queen Elizabeth and the coronation of King Charles.
The Welshman used to be on the centre of a media frenzy endmost summer season later reviews emerged {that a} senior BBC presenter had alleged relationships with a form of younger society.
His spouse Vicky Flind, who showed his identification as the individual on the centre of the allegations later days of hypothesis, stated Edwards used to be affected by severe psychological fitness problems. The police concluded that Edwards had now not damaged any regulations.
In April, Edwards resigned from the BBC, the place he earned about £475,000 a age, having been arrested on indecision of great offences in November endmost age. He used to be charged in June this age with making indecent pictures of youngsters.
The company endmost generation stated it will search to claw again masses of 1000’s of kilos in wage it paid the veteran presenter between his arrest and his escape. Edwards had “clearly undermined trust in the BBC and brought us into disrepute”, the company stated.
“These are extremely serious offences,” stated Goldspring, who advised Edwards he have been “forced to confront your wrongdoing in a very public way”.
“[However], you do not present a risk or danger to the public at large and specifically to children,” Goldspring added in his reason behind why Edwards used to be now not receiving a right away custodial sentence.
In mitigation submissions on Monday, the court docket used to be advised that Edwards had requested the person he used to be in touch with on WhatsApp to not ship him unlawful underage content material.
Year the fees are described as “making” indecent pictures, Edwards’ barrister, Philip Evans KC, reiterated to the court docket that this used to be a felony time period and there used to be deny advice Edwards had created any of the content material.
Evans stated the skilled reviews compiled for Edwards’ sentencing confirmed there used to be an “unfortunate storm” occurring in his hour on the presen of the offences and that he used to be affected by each psychological and bodily fitness issues.
Edwards used to be all the time a person of fine personality and “he has lost that good character in a very public way”, Evans stated.
