Former Shropshire headteacher faces 50 historic sex offences
A 95-year-old former headteacher of a privately-run school in Shropshire has appeared in court accused of 50 historic sex offences.
Jack Mount, of Paradise Lawn, South Molton, near Barnstaple, Devon, denies a total of 50 charges, including nine alleged rapes and 27 indecency offences, all dating from the time when he was the headmaster at Brookside School near Craven Arms.
The case has been transferred to Exeter Crown Court from Birmingham Crown Court.
The Recorder of the City of Exeter Judge Francis Gilbert, QC, has now ordered the case to be tried at Bristol Crown Court because it could not be heard in Devon until May next year.
The case involves 10 male and seven female complainants and is expected to take at least 12 weeks to try.
Mount is one of the oldest defendants ever to stand trial in Britain and is in poor health and suffering from Parkinson's disease.
He is facing a total of 50 charges, including nine alleged rapes and 27 indecency offences, all dating from the time when he was the headmaster at the school.
Judge Gilbert adjourned the case and bailed Mount to the date of his trial, which is expected to be at Bristol in January 2016.
