'Arrogant' lawyer groped woman in Christmas jumper
BBCAn "arrogant" solicitor who groped a woman beneath her Christmas jumper has been given a suspended prison sentence.
Timothy Luckhurst-Matthews, 70, thrust his hand up the woman's top, which bore the slogan "jingle my bells", and painfully squeezed her breast, Newcastle Crown Court heard.
The woman said Luckhurst-Matthews then told "vicious lies" and "abused" his skills as a solicitor and knowledge of the law to sway people against her.
He had denied any wrongdoing but was found guilty of sexual assault by jurors, and was jailed for 10 months suspended for two years.
The woman was wearing the festive jumper when she encountered Luckhurst-Matthews in December 2022, prosecutor Rachael Glover said.
When she said she could not believe he had not commented on it, Luckhurst-Matthews, of Howard Street in Gateshead, shoved his hand up her top and groped her, the court heard.
She cried at him to stop at which point he withdrew his hand, Ms Glover said.
'Arrogance disgusts me'
The woman told the court the five second-long assault and its aftermath had been devastating.
She said Luckhurst-Matthews "abused his skills as a solicitor to sway the minds of every person that he could" and his "vicious lies tainted the views" of multiple people against her.
The woman said Luckhurst-Matthews' "pathetic attempt to discredit the truth" was "abhorrent" and she had "spiralled into depression and anxiety".
She said Luckhurst-Matthews' suggestion to jurors that her Christmas jumper had "somehow invited" a sexual assault was an outdated attitude and "beyond comprehension".
"This man is cruel and thinks he is above the law," the woman said, adding: "His arrogance disgusts me."
She also said her life had been "on hold" for two and a half years waiting for the case to pass through the court system and had been "fundamentally changed".
'Pain was real'
Representing himself, Luckhurst-Matthews said it was "simply not true" he turned anyone against her and claimed the woman's allegation had been damaging to him.
He also planned to launch an appeal, the court heard.
Judge Carolyn Scott said Luckhurst-Matthews' actions were "inexcusable", shocking and "egregious".
She said the victim's pain was "real" and she should be commended for her bravery, while there would also be an impact on Luckhurst-Matthews who had now lost his good name as an "upstanding" member of the community, solicitor and "devout Christian".
A restraining order was also made and Luckhurst-Matthews must sign the sex offenders register for 10 years.
He was also ordered to pay £1,200 towards prosecution costs.