Mentally ill man fell through the cracks to cause 'tsunami of misery', court told

A MENTALLY ill man narrowly avoided jail for causing “a tsunami of misery” to people at the Arnewood Centre GP surgery in New Milton, as well as a health unit and church.

Gordon Reeve (67), of Badgers Copse, New Milton, had pleaded guilty at a previous court hearing to two counts of harassment without violence and two assaults.

At Southampton Magistrates’ Court on Wednesday, prosecutor Rachel Standish explained that the incidents at The Arnewood Practice occurred on 24th August last year, after Reeve had been refused additional medication to which he believed he was entitled.

He refused to leave before attempting to look for his GP, Dr Jon Bamford, in consulting rooms.

The court heard how receptionist Kelly Anderson stood in his way but he continued to move forward, forcing her backwards until she ended up against the door of one of the consulting rooms. Reeve hammered on the door and she feared he would hurt her.

When Dr Bamford came out, Reeve was abusive and then pushed another colleague, Dr Marc Picot.

Turning to the incidents at the Becton Centre in Barton, which took place between September and November last year, Mrs Standish said Reeve had visited the mental health facility on and off over a period of time.

However, he also became angry about his medication and abusive to administrator Tanya Powell. On one occasion he called the centre 70 times in 90 minutes and said: “I'll keep phoning and blocking the lines until I get my prescription.”

The court heard Ms Powell had been “worn down” by his behaviour and has since been signed off work due to stress.

Mrs Standish said the final set of incidents, which occurred between October 2018 and 29th January this year, affected members of the Ashley Baptist Church, of which Reeve had been a member.

After his mother had been moved to a care home, members of the congregation felt Reeve’s behaviour had changed and tried to help, but he began harassing the Rev David John. On one occasion, he followed him to a coffee shop and began calling him evil in front of shocked customers.

Reeve plagued him with telephone calls late at night, called him “a Judas” and questioned whether he was a good religious leader.

Youth pastor Rachel White was concerned by his behaviour and began working from home, with the court told she did not feel safe around Reeve.

Other members of the congregation received multiple emails and some even changed their routes to local places to avoid Reeve.

A victim impact statement from the Rev John said he had struggled to sleep due to the late-night calls, and he and his wife had been stressed by Reeve’s behaviour.

Defending, Raymond Tan told the court that his client suffered from mental health issues. He said: “He blames the church for putting his mother in care. His mother had been his companion and now he is a very lonely person.

“Regrettably, he fell through the cracks. He has mental health issues and the community received the fallout from the lack of social care.”

Turning to the other offences, he added: “He was prescribed a lot of medication and when [the GP] stopped it, he felt he was being stripped of his rights.”

However, Mr Tan said his client was now receiving help and had been assigned a carer.

District judge Peter Greenfield said: “These are serious offences. He has caused a tsunami of misery to these people. He has embarked on a campaign against anyone he's disagreed with, from doctors to the church.”

Imposing a 26-week sentence, suspended for two years, Judge Greenfield told Reeve he would go to prison if his behaviour continued. He added: “The public would expect the courts to put an end to it.”

Reeve was ordered to pay £200 compensation to both Tanya Powell and Kelly Anderson and £100 to Dr Picot. He was also told to stay away from The Arnewood Practice, Becton Centre or Ashley Baptist Church for two years.