A student who was charged with attacking a nurse with a metal pole and assaulting a paramedic and a police officer has walked free after a court heard her drink was spiked.
A judge said drink spiking was 'becoming more prevalent' and 'there seems to be clear evidence' in the case that Catherine Louise McSorley fell victim. As a result, he said, she 'wasn't culpable for her actions'. His comments follow the Crown Prosecution Service formally offering no evidence to support three charges of assaulting an emergency worker she faced as she prepared to stand trial.
Ms McSorley, 20, who denied the offences she was charged with, had her pint of beer spiked while she innocently left it unattended in a pub as she watched a Gaelic football match on TV with friends, Liverpool Crown Court heard.
The Merseyside branch of the Police Federation however, which represents rank and file officers, described its 'deep frustration' at what it called the 'appalling message' sent by the decision, reports The Echo.
Ms McSorley was formerly cleared of assaulting health care practitioner Jean Cooney, PC Sasha Palmer and a paramedic at the court on Monday after Michael Scholes, representing the CPS, offered no evidence.
Liverpool John Moores student Ms McSorley, originally from Belfast, was accused of punching a female paramedic called after she jumped from a window at her student accommodation in the city centre. She was then accused of attacking Ms Cooney with an IV stand after being taken to A&E at the Royal Liverpool Hospital on the evening of September 11, 2021, leaving the health care worker with bruising and pain.
As security and other staff attempted to restrain her, PC Palmer came to assist and Ms Cooney was accused of punching her in the face multiple times, dislodging her contact lens and causing swelling and reddening.
However The ECHO said it understood no blood tests were taken at the time Ms McSorley was arrested or treated in hospital, and there were no witnesses who could prove, or disprove, that a substance had been placed into her drink.
Speaking after the ruling, Ms Cooney, 40, who attended the hearing, said she was 'speechless' at the outcome. She said she learned about the decision in a briefing with the CPS, and was told there was no choice but to drop the case.
The decision, reports The Echo, followed a direction, by Judge Anil Murray, that the burden fell on the CPS to prove Ms McSorley had not been spiked, after her legal team provided statements from her friends describing a sudden change in her behaviour while they were at the pub.
The court heard she was taken home but became paranoid and delusional, and jumped from the window of her flat in Mount Pleasant. When interviewed, the student said she had very little memory and believed her drink may have been spiked, it was said. Witness statements from her friends and her mum said she was of good character and had never acted in that way before.
Mr Scholes, prosecuting, said: "At some point that afternoon she left her drink unattended in a pub. When she returned she had a drink of it and her behaviour became increasingly bizarre."
He said that as a matter of law, if on the balance of probabilities Ms McSorley had been the victim of spiking and was not aware that she had taken the substance, it 'would not be appropriate' for the Crown to continue the prosecution. Mr Scholes said: "There is a significant amount of material that points very clearly to the fact that Miss McSorley was a victim of spiking."
The judge said that after drinking from her pint she became delusional and paranoid and thought someone was going to kill her, resulting in her jumping from the window.
Judge Murray said: "We know there is a recent campaign about spiking which is becoming more prevalent. There seems to be clear evidence in this case that she was spiked and therefore acted in a way and wasn't culpable for her actions." Discharging Ms McSorley from the dock, he suggested: "You need to take more care in future and not leave your drinks unattended."
Tony Fairclough, chairman of the Merseyside Police Federation, was scathing of the outcome: "The federation has worked hard over the years to change the narrative and say that being assaulted is never part of the job - all attacks must be taken seriously.
"Police officers who have been the victim of an assault, are victims. Underneath their uniforms they are husbands, wives, sons and daughters who go back home at the end of their shifts. All too often they are left feeling failed and disrespected as a result of some appalling decisions made by the courts and Crown Prosecution Service."
After the hearing, Ms McSorley declined to comment but said she had had to close down her Facebook account because of the number of comments her case had attracted. She is still continuing her university course in the city. The Crown Prosecution Service has been contacted by the Echo for comment.
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