2012: DISGRACED EX-WORCESTERSHIRE COUNTY COUNCIL LEADER JAILED FOR SEX ASSAULTS
A former lecturer at Halesowen College has received a four-year prison sentence following convictions for indecent assaults on a girl under 16 and an unrelated sexual attack on a teenager.Dr.
George Lord, previously a prominent figure as the head of Worcestershire County Council, appeared at Birmingham Crown Court where he pleaded guilty to three counts of indecency involving a girl aged 14 and 15 during the 1970s, when he was serving as a church minister in Droitwich.
The 79-year-old, who departed from Halesowen College in the mid-1990s, had earlier been convicted in January for a sexual assault on a 19-year-old woman at County Hall in Worcester in October 2010.
Bernard Linnemann recounted details of Lord’s misconduct in the 1970s, revealing that Lord was in his 40s and married when he began grooming an 11-year-old girl facing family difficulties.
According to Mr.
Linnemann, Lord would tell her she was beautiful and sensual by the time she was 14.
On one occasion, Lord, then a county councillor for Alvechurch and district councillor for Marlbrook, took his young victim to a wildlife sanctuary seeking privacy.
Another incident involved Lord driving along the A38, during which he nearly caused a car crash.
Lord, a former resident of Marlbrook, was responsible for approximately 30 indecent assaults on the girl, which correspond to the three charges brought against him.
The girl confided in two school friends but hesitated to tell her parents due to fear of their reaction, Mr.
Linnemann said.
By her late teens, she began a relationship with a man she eventually married, with Lord officiating their wedding.
However, their marriage broke down after two years, reportedly due to the trauma inflicted by Lord.
In addition to the historic convictions, Lord was found guilty of a separate sexual assault committed in 2010.
He assaulted a 19-year-old woman as she bent over a plaque in County Hall, Worcester.
Judge Godsmark described the assaults as among the most serious, noting they spanned several years and involved abuse of Lord’s authority.
He sentenced Lord to four years, with 12 months for each offence.
