Disgraced Isle of Wight councillor, Daryll Pitcher, cannot be disqualified as a councillor until his appeal against the guilty verdict of raping a girl under the age of 13 has been disposed of or abandoned, Isle of Wight council say.
However, if Cllr Pitcher does not attend a meeting for the next three months – which seems very likely to be the case as he is now serving at least one year of his 27 month sentence in prison – he can be disqualified.
Despite not having a statement ready in anticipation of the court’s sentencing on Wednesday, and refusing to comment on Thursday, the Isle of Wight council have finally spoken today (Friday).
Awaiting appeal outcome
An Isle of Wight council spokesperson explained that an application for permission to appeal was lodged last month by Cllr Pitcher. They told News OnTheWight,
“The council re-iterates that it has no powers to remove Cllr Pitcher from his office of councillor and therefore unless he resigns or in future becomes statutorily disqualified from holding office under the Local Government Act 1972 then he remains a councillor.
“Disqualification by reason of being sentenced to three months or more imprisonment or by reason of being subject to notification requirements cannot take effect by operation of law until an appeal has been disposed of or abandoned.
“It has been confirmed to the council that an application for permission to appeal was lodged last month.”
Last meeting attended in January
The spokesperson added some extra detail about possible disqualification should Cllr Pitcher not attend meetings for six consecutive months,
“A further ground for disqualification for any councillor is if they were to fail to attend meetings for a period of six consecutive months from the date of their last attendance which in this case their last attendance was in January 2023.”
The 46-year-old was found guilty of two counts of rape of a girl under the age of 13, between June 1990 and March 1992, when he was himself was between the ages of 13 and 15.
