Deputy headteacher jailed for rape and sexual abuse of child with partner

22 December 2021, 23:07

A deputy headteacher has been jailed for raping and sexually abusing a child with her partner.

Julie Morris, 44, from Hindley in Wigan, was jailed for 13 years and four months after pleading guilty to 18 offences, including two counts of rape, nine of inciting a child under the age of 13 to engage in sexual activity and two of engaging in sexual activity in the presence of a child.

Morris was also ordered to serve a licence period of four years after her prison sentence.

The teacher admitted three counts of taking indecent images of a child, one of engaging in sexual communication with a child and one of possessing indecent images of a child.

Liverpool Crown Court heard that she and her partner, David Morris, 52, from Eccleston, St Helens, filmed themselves abusing and raping the victim - a girl under 13 - in a series of videos discovered on his phone.

The videos showed Julie Morris giggling as the abuse took place, the court heard.

Her partner was jailed for 16 years, also with an extended licence period of four years, for 34 offences, including seven counts of rape and 13 counts of causing or inciting a child under 13 to engage in sexual activity.

Read more: Deputy headteacher cries as she appears in court charged with rape and child sex offences

The court was told Julie Morris was safeguarding lead at St George's Central C of E Primary School in Wigan, but the offences are not related to her employment there.

Honorary Recorder of Liverpool judge Andrew Menary said: "Every now and again you see cases, the circumstances of which are almost beyond belief. This is one of those cases.

"It demonstrates that human depravity really knows no depths."

Julie Morris would also take pictures of other children, which were not indecent, and would send them to her partner to "feed his predilection to sexually abusing young children", the court heard.

John Wyn Williams, prosecuting, said the couple's "sordid secret" was revealed when police found a conversation about sexual abuse of children involving David Morris in a phone seized during a search warrant.

David Morris was arrested but cautioned and released and a number of devices were seized, which showed the recordings of rape and sexual abuse, the court heard.

Mr Wyn Williams said both defendants were arrested the following day as they appeared to be trying to evade police.

As well as videos and images on David Morris's phone, officers trawled through 175,000 pages of messages between the couple, revealing sexually explicit communications.

In the messages, they described the victim as "our little plaything".

Paul Becker, defending Julie Morris, said she had "lost everything in life", including her reputation, career and home as a result.

He said: "She was held in high regard prior to her offending."

Meanwhile, Charles Lander, defending David Morris, said he had showed genuine remorse and was "under no illusions" that he would be going to prison for a long time.