:00:00. > :00:17.President Putin calls for the West to condemn it. Now
:00:18. > :00:43.But it gave her more strength. It was almost like he was feeding off
:00:44. > :00:47.market. Helen and her family are now asking
:00:48. > :00:54.why the police didn't take action sooner.
:00:55. > :01:01.And the couple who need to make a 600 mile trip to visit their
:01:02. > :01:04.autistic son, borrowing money. Water quality at South West beaches
:01:05. > :01:07.shows a big improvement. And sharing a swamp ` the
:01:08. > :01:12.butterflies getting some snappy new neighbours.
:01:13. > :01:15.Tonight the man who caused these injuries in a frenzied attack is
:01:16. > :01:19.facing a lengthy jail sentence. Helen Pearson says she pleaded with
:01:20. > :01:23.her attacker to stop, but he carried on stabbing her with a pair of
:01:24. > :01:26.scissors. Today a jury found Joe Willis, who is 49 and from Exeter,
:01:27. > :01:29.guilty of attempted murder after he'd carried out a five year
:01:30. > :01:35.stalking campaign against Helen and her family, threatening her and
:01:36. > :01:38.attacking her home and car. The family have accused Devon and
:01:39. > :01:42.Cornwall police of missing dozens of opportunities to catch Willis and an
:01:43. > :01:46.investigation into the way the force handled the case is underway. This
:01:47. > :01:56.report from our home affairs correspondent Simon Hall contains
:01:57. > :02:00.distressing images from the start. Helen Pearson believes the police
:02:01. > :02:09.missed repeated opportunities to prevent the attack which could have
:02:10. > :02:16.taken her life. The culmination of a five`year stalking campaign, she was
:02:17. > :02:24.set upon with a peer of scissors. When I look at his face, the
:02:25. > :02:35.realisation of who it was, and I suspected, I remember pleading,
:02:36. > :02:45.please, no. It was like it gave him a more strength. It was like he was
:02:46. > :02:50.feeding of it. The stalker was Joan Willis. The
:02:51. > :02:56.reason for his campaign, one night Helen refused to go with him to see
:02:57. > :03:03.a band. The campaign began with attacks on her car. Tyres were
:03:04. > :03:06.slashed and the bodywork scratched. Graffiti was adopted around the
:03:07. > :03:13.streets of her flat. Then the letters. I want to play again, see
:03:14. > :03:22.how you would cope if attacked. But the game begin. A dead cat was left
:03:23. > :03:28.on her doorstep, there were attacks on her flat, often in the middle of
:03:29. > :03:31.the night. Helen revealed details to us because she believes stalking is
:03:32. > :03:38.not taken seriously enough by the police. They logged 125 incidents
:03:39. > :03:42.with the police and had evidence Willis was the stalker. But the
:03:43. > :03:48.police did not catch despite her repeatedly desperate pleas. I did
:03:49. > :03:54.not know if I was being followed, whether my friends would targeted,
:03:55. > :03:59.every night I went to bed, I didn't know if it would be a broken window,
:04:00. > :04:10.what would happen. Just constantly living in fear. I got to the end of
:04:11. > :04:20.my tether. You see that there is no way destocking is ever going to end.
:04:21. > :04:27.`` the stalking. You just reached the end point where you think, it is
:04:28. > :04:35.better if I am not in the equation. Her parents were also targeted and
:04:36. > :04:38.their car attacked. In frustration with the police they brought in a
:04:39. > :04:43.private detective and even began investigating themselves. Now the
:04:44. > :04:50.family are making an official complaint against Devon and Cornwall
:04:51. > :05:00.police. We try to raise the incident each time what were brushed off. ``
:05:01. > :05:06.but. Nobody in the police could see that the level of violence was
:05:07. > :05:10.rising and rising. It was time to do something proactive. Our complaint
:05:11. > :05:15.is, why did they not see what was happening and do something to stop
:05:16. > :05:19.it? They did not seem to appreciate the
:05:20. > :05:26.stalking incidents were getting worse. We could see from the
:05:27. > :05:35.letters, the dead cat on the doorstep, that this was typical of
:05:36. > :05:41.what a stalker was. I could not believe, that one of the authorities
:05:42. > :05:49.you go to to try to help, will not helping. I was shocked. I could not
:05:50. > :05:54.believe it. The police say they have begun an internal enquiry into their
:05:55. > :06:01.handling of the incidents. But they insist they did investigate
:06:02. > :06:06.thoroughly. We took it seriously. We sent letters for forensic
:06:07. > :06:13.examination, utilised CCTV, as was heard during the court process. We
:06:14. > :06:18.did take it seriously we just did not have the hard evidence to
:06:19. > :06:27.progress any further. Victim support charities say this represents a
:06:28. > :06:31.classic excavation of stalking. `` escalation. They say it is a
:06:32. > :06:33.persistent problem that action is only taken when crimes become so
:06:34. > :06:40.serious they can no longer be ignored. It took the jury three
:06:41. > :06:45.hours to reach the verdict. As the form and pronounced the word,
:06:46. > :06:59.guilty, Joan Willis hung his head. `` for men. `` Cho
:07:00. > :07:04.Richards, the Director of Paladin, the National Stalking Support
:07:05. > :07:11.Service. I began by asking her how common
:07:12. > :07:14.cases like this were. Running the National stalking advocacy service,
:07:15. > :07:20.and even prior to the change in the law, we do see a lot of cases like
:07:21. > :07:27.this. The pattern of behaviour is not being picked up. It is really
:07:28. > :07:30.not good enough. It is important that people pick up stalking is a
:07:31. > :07:35.pattern of behaviour and they understand that it will be a pattern
:07:36. > :07:42.and get in far earlier to intervene and prevent the worst things from
:07:43. > :07:50.happening. Carter because this case in terms of
:07:51. > :07:53.how it was dealt with by the police? Her Majesty suspected just released
:07:54. > :08:00.their findings in all police forces and that's a similar things around
:08:01. > :08:03.all cases. The pattern was not being picked up. A challenge with the case
:08:04. > :08:08.of Helen as she did not have a relationship with the perpetrator.
:08:09. > :08:11.It did not go to a specialist unit therefore. It is about saying that
:08:12. > :08:15.the police understood these matters need be understood by all police
:08:16. > :08:18.source. There hasn't been a literature of the perpetrator will
:08:19. > :08:20.stay with the local, may be the neighbourhood team, the plesiosaurs,
:08:21. > :08:27.and it is fatal that they are trained as well. How can the police
:08:28. > :08:31.be expected to react to have a thing. Especially given the cutbacks
:08:32. > :08:39.they have suffered? It's about prioritising. Public protection is
:08:40. > :08:42.case. Particularly with stalking. The kind of cases where women and
:08:43. > :08:48.children are far more likely to be killed. It is important that they
:08:49. > :08:51.prioritise training. Not just about specialist staff but also about
:08:52. > :09:01.training the safety neighbourhood teams. And bringing in specialist to
:09:02. > :09:11.do that. Sales, coming and, if special sled and put. The cost of a
:09:12. > :09:16.murder is about ?1.54 million. The RIP, if it goes wrong, it is also
:09:17. > :09:21.the reputation increases. `` and pieces. With the new legislation
:09:22. > :09:28.brought then are you seeing stalking being treated more seriously? Having
:09:29. > :09:33.campaign for the new law it is fantastic this year. But all of the
:09:34. > :09:40.key issues as you need to train people. We are pleased that exists.
:09:41. > :09:42.Building to ensure the police officers, trim precision service,
:09:43. > :09:48.judges, magistrates, you'll notice tests.
:09:49. > :09:57.Photos of the resource monies to be done. That is right. The new
:09:58. > :10:00.legislation is a great step forward. We have a new national stalking
:10:01. > :10:13.advocacy service. That was launched last year. But the say, very little
:10:14. > :10:17.has changed. They have imagined it. `` thank you very much indeed.
:10:18. > :10:19.Bathing water quality at the region's beaches improved
:10:20. > :10:24.significantly last year, according to new figures from the Marine
:10:25. > :10:28.Conservation Society. The number of beaches now classed as recommended
:10:29. > :10:31.went up by 59% between 2012 and 2013. Instow, in North Devon, was
:10:32. > :10:34.the only beach to fail the mandatory 'bathing water standard' for a
:10:35. > :10:38.second year running. And 11 beaches moved from 'fail' to 'recommended'.
:10:39. > :10:40.The way water quality is tested is based on a thirty`year`old data
:10:41. > :10:44.collection system which means a beach can pass or fail depending on
:10:45. > :10:50.the conditions on the days the samples are taken. As Sophie Pierce
:10:51. > :11:01.now reports, some people think that's unfair and the system should
:11:02. > :11:10.be changed. The speech failed to make the grade
:11:11. > :11:13.last year. `` this beach. It is a very large estuary with a high
:11:14. > :11:20.population content in Exeter and on the margins. We are surrounded by
:11:21. > :11:26.agricultural land and we have lots of roads that discharge into here.
:11:27. > :11:32.When those high rainwater comes through here, and to the sea. It is
:11:33. > :11:35.one of the few beaches and religion getting that cleared for clean
:11:36. > :11:43.water. There through the consent of the total. Coral it is really good
:11:44. > :11:49.news based on last year with a lot of people coming and enjoying.
:11:50. > :11:56.Confirmation of equality of beaches and in bathing waters. It is based
:11:57. > :11:59.on 20 water samples taken at each between May and September. This
:12:00. > :12:06.your's excellent results reflect last your's try summer. The
:12:07. > :12:14.prevailing conditions while other councillors. What sought on earth
:12:15. > :12:21.that is have an impact. Even on the day of the sampling events, the
:12:22. > :12:29.weather will have an endless. The south west resort lies usual and
:12:30. > :12:36.these results. Is it time to change to a more accurate system. This
:12:37. > :12:42.could be a more medium way of doing it. More snapshots over the course
:12:43. > :12:54.of the year. Not just taken on one day like today. The system is about
:12:55. > :13:00.30 years old. You might call it retrospective testing. The
:13:01. > :13:06.environment agency has been looking at means of forecasting water
:13:07. > :13:10.quality for years to come. This year, for the first time, they will
:13:11. > :13:20.trial the water quality forecasting system. Selecting beaches that are
:13:21. > :13:24.prone to fluctuations in quality. In the future, technology permitting,
:13:25. > :13:28.it may be possible to simply check the water quality on the day we
:13:29. > :13:32.visit the beach. A Devon couple have to make a
:13:33. > :13:35.600`mile round trip to see their severely autistic son at a
:13:36. > :13:38.specialist mental health hospital in Norfolk. It's the second time this
:13:39. > :13:43.month that Spotlight has highlighted the shortage of young people's
:13:44. > :13:46.mental health beds in the region. The NHS admits there's a shortage of
:13:47. > :13:51.inpatient units for children and adolescents and a review of services
:13:52. > :14:03.is under way across the country. Our Health Correspondent Sally Mountjoy
:14:04. > :14:10.has this report. Mark Harvey is 17. But because he has autism, he is
:14:11. > :14:14.emotionally about five years old. After an episode of disturbed pager
:14:15. > :14:22.in the New Year he was sectioned and sent to the nearest hospital
:14:23. > :14:29.available. `` disturbed episode. He is heartbroken. Closing in on
:14:30. > :14:36.himself. The staff might say he is good, but we know his mood, we now
:14:37. > :14:43.had oppressed he is. `` how depressed. Every two or three weeks
:14:44. > :14:54.his parents make the return journey from Torquay to Norfolk. A round
:14:55. > :15:02.trip of 644 miles. It takes 11 hours each way and they return cost is
:15:03. > :15:07.?138. But in three months, Mark and Sharon have had no official help
:15:08. > :15:13.with travel costs. They borrow money and reliable cash from a local
:15:14. > :15:16.charity and their church. If local authorities were forced by an
:15:17. > :15:22.automatic system to meet the costs of travel and in most cases
:15:23. > :15:29.accommodation then it might put more pressure on local authorities to
:15:30. > :15:32.fight for more local provision. Spotlight previously highlighted the
:15:33. > :15:37.case of a 13`year`old boy with autism in a specialist unit in
:15:38. > :15:44.Birmingham for 18 months. His parents are campaigning for his
:15:45. > :15:51.return. The idea of Torquay to Norwich, Cornwall, Birmingham, sadly
:15:52. > :15:54.these are common situations. What they also mean is that those
:15:55. > :15:56.clinical commissioning groups are spending many thousands of pounds on
:15:57. > :16:18.very expensive placement. He said they always tried to meet
:16:19. > :16:25.reasonable travel expenses and claims were reviewed. The family has
:16:26. > :16:37.just heard they will be reimbursed. NHS England acknowledges the
:16:38. > :16:40.shortage of dates. Beds. Children should not be in the situation where
:16:41. > :16:47.parents are travelling miles to see them. It is just wrong. He is just
:16:48. > :16:50.hoping his own son will be allowed home soon.
:16:51. > :16:53.The MP for Totnes, Sarah Wollaston, has denied pressurising two men to
:16:54. > :16:57.report sexual assault allegations against the former Deputy Speaker.
:16:58. > :17:08.Nigel Evans was cleared of all charges last week. Dr Wollaston says
:17:09. > :17:13.she offered to stand down as an MP if the two men felt she had put them
:17:14. > :17:17.under pressure to go the police with their claims. Her constituency
:17:18. > :17:22.chairman says other south west MPs should support her publicly. Claire
:17:23. > :17:26.Jones reports. It has been a challenging few days for the MP
:17:27. > :17:29.thrown into the national limelight for offering to help two men who
:17:30. > :17:38.alleged that they had been assaulted by the Deputy Speaker. I am a member
:17:39. > :17:43.of the health select committee. We have been saying that they should be
:17:44. > :17:49.striking doctors often fail to act on serious concerns raised by
:17:50. > :17:52.colleagues. It would not be right of me to fail to expect those standards
:17:53. > :18:00.as a parliamentarian without applying the same standards myself.
:18:01. > :18:07.It is always difficult, particularly were very popular colleagues are
:18:08. > :18:13.concerned. Nigel Evans, cleared of all charges, agrees with the
:18:14. > :18:19.decision. If you are given the information she was, you have got to
:18:20. > :18:25.take it somewhere. And her local constituency chairman also backs.
:18:26. > :18:31.MPs should publicly back her, she deserves it. Her decision was
:18:32. > :18:38.supported by the Devon and Cornwall police and crime commission. She has
:18:39. > :18:43.provided support to two people who claimed sexual assault on them. It
:18:44. > :18:53.is disgraceful that she has been criticised over this. In my view she
:18:54. > :18:58.has acted totally promptly. On the high Street, divided opinions. It
:18:59. > :19:05.was the right thing but will not help her political career. She
:19:06. > :19:11.ignited the fire, it all got blown up, I don't think she should have
:19:12. > :19:16.said anything. Possibly was the right thing, but I feel sorry for
:19:17. > :19:23.him. If you see something you don't think is right, you should speak up,
:19:24. > :19:25.definitely. She says she now intends to return her attention to her
:19:26. > :19:28.constituents. It's claimed that research by
:19:29. > :19:31.scientists at the University of Exeter is changing the lives of
:19:32. > :19:34.children with diabetes. The pioneering work has meant youngsters
:19:35. > :19:37.have been able to change from insulin injections to tablets. And
:19:38. > :19:46.the results have prompted one family to call the treatment a "miracle".
:19:47. > :19:51.Spotlight's Scott Bingham reports. At five years old, health problems
:19:52. > :19:57.due to diabetes meant Jack was unable to talk. But after scientists
:19:58. > :20:03.at the University of Exeter put him on tablets to stabilise his blood
:20:04. > :20:09.sugar, Jack, now 14, delighted his family by altering his first words.
:20:10. > :20:16.He would often collapse on the floor because his blood sugar was so low.
:20:17. > :20:21.He had seizures. They all stopped. He had never said a word, six weeks
:20:22. > :20:25.after taking medication he walked out of school and said hello mum,
:20:26. > :20:33.for the first time. Now he never shuts up! The breakthrough came
:20:34. > :20:39.after scientists identified a genetic mutation with the pancreas
:20:40. > :20:41.some sufferers. It meant some patients like Jack could be treated
:20:42. > :20:55.with tablets rather than ensuring injections. `` insulin.
:20:56. > :20:58.For a scientist who spent most of the time in the laboratory to
:20:59. > :21:04.actually meet the people who benefit from research is really amazing. We
:21:05. > :21:11.found we could learn so much from them, from sharing their
:21:12. > :21:14.experiences. More than 300 people have been successfully treated
:21:15. > :21:19.across the world and the medical School and Hospital now hosts an
:21:20. > :21:25.international centre of excellence. The discovery has also changed
:21:26. > :21:28.international guidelines. All children with neonatal diabetes
:21:29. > :21:31.should now have a genetic test to see if they also can switch to
:21:32. > :21:34.tablets. South West farmers who were worst
:21:35. > :21:37.hit by the recent flooding are being told they can apply for grants of up
:21:38. > :21:40.to ?35,000. Environment Secretary Owen Paterson announced the
:21:41. > :21:47.extension to the Farm Recovery Fund in a visit to the Somerset Levels
:21:48. > :21:58.this morning. Nationally ten million will be made available.
:21:59. > :22:01.Thousands of homes and businesses in parts of West Cornwall still don't
:22:02. > :22:05.have mains water. It's been off since around nine o'clock this
:22:06. > :22:08.morning after a burst water main in Hayle. South West Water says most of
:22:09. > :22:12.the properties affected are in St Ives, St Erth and Carbis Bay. They
:22:13. > :22:14.hope to have supplies restored by tomorrow morning.
:22:15. > :22:17.Cornwall Council issued the second highest number of parking fines
:22:18. > :22:19.outside of London according to a Freedom of Information request.
:22:20. > :22:23.There were 47,000 tickets issued in the county last year, bringing in
:22:24. > :22:26.nearly ?2 million in revenue. The council say it's one of the biggest
:22:27. > :22:29.unitary authorities in the country. Hundreds of butterflies have been
:22:30. > :22:32.released into the crocodile swamp at Paignton Zoo. At more than 26
:22:33. > :22:35.Celsius and with high humidity it's the perfect environment for the
:22:36. > :22:39.insects. But how will it work out for them in their new shared home?
:22:40. > :22:47.Our South Devon reporter John Ayres has been to find out. They would not
:22:48. > :22:52.be my first choice if I was looking for a new housemate but as it turns
:22:53. > :22:59.out, the crocodile swamp, which also has snakes, is the ideal place. The
:23:00. > :23:02.only other place in the zoo with suitable conditions is the reptile
:23:03. > :23:12.house, but the butterflies would not last seconds in there. The reptiles
:23:13. > :23:15.will have a field day. But crocodiles and snakes are not
:23:16. > :23:22.interested in butterflies. They eat lots of different things but not
:23:23. > :23:30.insects. It is perfect conditions. Today they were released, in their
:23:31. > :23:36.own time. They are really stunning things. The caterpillar makes the
:23:37. > :23:44.case around it, basically its body dissolves, it reforms into a
:23:45. > :23:52.butterfly. As it does so, as it is solid enough, pops open the case and
:23:53. > :23:54.begins to emerge. It is all about celebrating
:23:55. > :24:01.biodiversity and the 100th birthday of the zoo.
:24:02. > :24:21.Lots of pictures have been sent in. The weather has been beautiful
:24:22. > :24:29.today. Glorious sunshine. Pretty good temperatures. 16, 17 Celsius.
:24:30. > :24:36.Very good for this time of year. Not quite so warm along the south coast.
:24:37. > :24:44.The reason is the breeze. Despite the sunshine, no more than 11 or 12
:24:45. > :24:48.on the south Cornwall coast. Still some sunshine tomorrow, still fine
:24:49. > :24:55.and dry. You can see where the area of high pressure is all stop not
:24:56. > :25:01.just us, France, Belgium, across the Channel, the influence of the
:25:02. > :25:08.high`pressure, moving away from us. It allows one week weather system to
:25:09. > :25:12.drift towards us on Thursday. Generally more cloudy for all those.
:25:13. > :25:17.Temperatures are still good. But then a drop. Particularly as we move
:25:18. > :25:23.into the start of the Easter holiday. The satellite picture from
:25:24. > :25:29.earlier, completely free of cloud, we have not seen that much in April.
:25:30. > :25:34.This was earlier today, the youth sailing Championships. Conditions
:25:35. > :25:39.could not be more perfect. A decent breeze, clear blue skies. The song
:25:40. > :25:50.has been pretty strong for the time of year, five on the UV index. So be
:25:51. > :26:00.careful, the sun at this time of year has some strength to it.
:26:01. > :26:06.Overnight, Cleo skies remaining. `` clear. Overnight temperatures
:26:07. > :26:14.probably done as low as four degrees. Just a little bit warmer
:26:15. > :26:18.than last night. Tomorrow should be lovely. Cloud in the afternoon. It
:26:19. > :26:25.might just make the sunshine a bit hazy. Perhaps a bit warmer around
:26:26. > :26:31.the south coast. Top temperature, 16 degrees. Again, the onshore breeze
:26:32. > :26:40.holding the temperatures down to just 12. The Isles of Scilly, a fine
:26:41. > :26:50.day. Cloud making the sunshine a bit hazy. And the high water times:
:26:51. > :26:57.surfing has been disappointing. We have had some lovely clean waves on
:26:58. > :27:06.the north coast today, similar tomorrow. The coastal waters
:27:07. > :27:14.forecast. Winds from the East, South East, south`east tomorrow. Slowly
:27:15. > :27:17.dropping through the afternoon. Generally dry with good visibility.
:27:18. > :27:24.Heading towards the Easter weekend, Thursday, more cloud around.
:27:25. > :27:30.Slightly different conditions. Saturday is a fine day. Lots of
:27:31. > :27:31.uncertainty. More cloud and potential for outbreaks of rain.
:27:32. > :27:40.Good evening. That is all for now. We are back at
:27:41. > :27:42.a p.m. And 10:25pm. Good night.