Maldon councillor sacked after sentencing for breaching order

A councillor found guilty of breaching a non-molestation order has been given a suspended sentence and fired from his role.

Chrisy Morris, who was an independent councillor on Maldon District Council in Essex, was given eight months in prison, suspended for 18 months.

Morris was found guilty at a trial earlier this year at Chelmsford Crown Court.

He was also given a restraining order and 200 hours of unpaid work.

The breach offence took place in July 2019.

He was found not guilty of breaching a restraining order against the same woman the non-molestation order related to.

Judge Timothy Walker ordered him to complete 30 days of rehabilitation and pay prosecution costs of £500.

Morris, who represented the Heybridge West ward, had claimed his breach was a "coincidence" because he did not know where the woman lived and said he was not "the monster" he was perceived to be, the Local Democracy Reporting Service said.

The head of paid service at the council, Richard Holmes, said in a statement: "I can confirm that Chrisy Morris with immediate effect is no longer an elected member of Maldon District Council.

"The council takes this matter very seriously. For now, I can say that the council has carried out its own conduct investigations and these have shown Chrisy Morris to be a person who has the capacity to 'lie, mislead and intimidate'. 

"A number of staff and councillors have been impacted by Chrisy Morris' conduct and today's sentencing strips him of his ability to continue to behave in this way as an elected representative." 

Essex Police were called to a council meeting in November to reports of Morris acting disruptively, and another meeting was abandoned in December after he was accused of disorderly conduct,

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