SOUTH Yorkshire Police Federation has said it is “incredibly disappointed” that a man has been cleared of attempted murder after attacking a Sheffield PC with an axe.<\/p>\n
Zuleika Payne, Chair Elect of South Yorkshire Police Federation,\u00a0(pictured)\u00a0said the verdict “sends out completely the wrong message”.<\/p>\n
Nathan Sumner left PC Lisa Bates with a fractured skull and severed finger after the axe attack.<\/p>\n
PC Bates also broke her leg in an attempt to escape.\u00a0A\u00a0jury at Sheffield Crown Court cleared Sumner of attempted murder and instead found him guilty of causing grievous bodily harm with intent.<\/p>\n
“Officers, not just in South Yorkshire but up and down the country, will be feeling incredibly disappointed,” said Zuleika .<\/p>\n
“We understand when we join the police service that there is an element of risk attached to being a police officer. However, the concern is that assaults and attacks on police officers become so commonplace that it’s going to become regarded as part and parcel of the job.<\/p>\n
“That situation can never be acceptable, and attacks like this are despicable beyond words.”<\/p>\n
Zuleika added that police officers must be supported in their efforts to protect and serve their local communities. “This verdict flies in the face of that,” she said.<\/p>\n
The attack on PC Bates goes to show that officers do not know what they are walking into when they attend each call-out and serves as a “ghastly illustration” of the fact that cuts have consequences \u2013 something that the Police Federation has repeatedly raised with government, said the Chair Elect.<\/p>\n
What I find incredibly galling is that it wasn\u2019t so long ago, at our National Police Federation Conference, the Right Honourable Theresa May who\u00a0was the then Home Secretary accused us of crying wolf,\u201d said Zuleika. \u201cWell I can assure you that Lisa Bates, on the night in question, was not crying wolf, she was crying for help. This is a desperate situation for an officer to be in and we\u2019ve got to avoid it happening again.\u201d<\/p>\n
Sumner will be sentenced on Friday 2 December.<\/p>\n
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