Criminal cases that the Crown Prosecution Service take to court are in the news every day. This section also covers many issues related to our work, including violence against women and girls, hate crime, support for victims and witnesses, statistics, and speeches by the Director of Public Prosecutions and other senior staff.
Latest news
You can find our latest news stories here and search for older stories. You can also find more information about high-profile cases and the work of the CPS.
This press release was originally published on 6 March 2025.Update: On 4 April 2025 Joanne Sharkey was given a two-year suspended prison sentence suspended for two years at Liverpool Crown Court after previously admitting manslaughter by diminished responsibility. A woman has admitted killing…
A Merseyside man has been sentenced for stalking and harassing Strictly Come Dancing judge Shirley Ballas.Kyle Shaw, 37, of Whetstone Lane, Birkenhead, began contacting relatives of the former dancer and TV personality in 2014. The contact became threatening and abusive when they refused to engage…
Former Premier League footballer Brandon Williams has pleaded guilty to dangerous driving after being caught speeding in Cheshire. Williams, 24, who was contracted to Manchester United at the time but was loaned to Ipswich Town during the 2023-24 season, was spotted by witnesses driving at…
A care worker who had a sexual relationship with a vulnerable woman he was looking after and made her pregnant has been jailed.Iain Barton, 58, of Glamis Road in Old Swan, Liverpool, was working night shifts as a support worker at a home on Merseyside for people recovering from mental health…
A group of men who diverted electricity to supply cannabis farms run by organised crime gangs have been jailed for more than 28 years.The men ran a sophisticated operation under cover of being a legitimate company, digging up roads to repair utilities.They spliced electricity mains up and down the…
A man who grabbed a woman in a park in broad daylight and attempted to rape her while she was with her young son has been jailed.John Whitfield, 37, of Layton Close, Birchwood, Warrington, grabbed the woman from behind at around 1.55pm in July 2024.She was in the park in Warrington with her young…
The former boyfriend of murder victim Ashley Dale has been sentenced for conspiracy to supply class A drugs. Lee Harrison, 27, of Liverpool Road, Huyton, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to supply crack cocaine and heroin and possession with intent to supply cocaine on 23 December 2024 at…
Three men have been jailed for murdering a 36-year-old man following a drive-by shooting in Merseyside.Rikki Berry died after a balaclava-clad man riding an electric bike fired four shots at him in Quarryside Drive, Kirkby at 6.33pm on 17 July 2024.The electric bike was travelling on the pavement…
A criminology student at Liverpool University has been sentenced for sexually assaulting two female students.Ewan Blair, 20, of Brownlow Hill in, Liverpool, met both women in the autumn term of 2023 and both said he seemed friendly at first.He met one of the women in a bar in Liverpool city centre…
A convicted sex offender has been jailed for rape and attempted rape after DNA analysis linked him to another attack.A 19-year-old woman was walking home from a night out in Warrington town centre in the early hours of 29 July 2023, when she was approached by Mariyan Grudev, 39. She’d heard…
Press ReleaseSexual offencesMersey-Cheshire
Press Office contact details
Please note that our Press Office is NOT able to deal with issues or queries from members of the public - these contact details are for accredited journalists ONLY. Do not call this number unless you a member of the press. For all general enquiries, please visit contact.cps.gov.uk.
If you are a national or international journalist with a media enquiry, you can contact the CPS Press Office on 020 3357 0906 or email [email protected] (9am-5pm weekdays only).
For out-of-hours media enquiries please call 020 3357 0906 to reach the duty press officer.
If you follow us on social media, you can expect posts covering some or all of the following:
Operational updates on decisions to prosecute or take no further action;
Reactions and statements on trial outcomes;
Policy updates from the Director of Public Prosecutions and other prosecutors;
Updates on media appearances by CPS staff
Content that explains the role of the CPS and how we work
Highlighting of relevant work by our criminal justice partners and other stakeholders
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Media protocol
To ensure greater openness in the reporting of criminal proceedings, the CPS, the police and media representatives developed a joint protocol for working together. We are currently in the process of updating the protocol.
