THREE Police and Crime Commissioners have appealed after their misconduct complaint against a judge who allowed a domestic abuser to walk free from court was rejected.

The commissioners launched a joint complaint against Judge George Moorhouse over what they argued was his unduly lenient sentencing of 34-year-old Anthony Bruce, who subjected his wife to a terrifying ordeal at their home in Pelton, near Chester-le-Street.

In September, Bruce was given a 12-month suspended prison sentence at Teesside Crown Court after holding an eight-inch blade to his wife’s throat and threatening to scald her and “put a bullet in her brain”.

Northumbria Commissioner Vera Baird, Durham’s Ron Hogg and Cleveland’s Barry Coppinger also raised four other cases in which Judge Moorhouse gave suspended sentences to people convicted of domestic violence.

The commissioners initially wrote to the Judicial Conduct Investigations Office, which said their complaint was not within its remit because it concerns a sentence.

The three have now taken their complaint a step further by appealing to the Judicial Appointments and Conduct Ombudsman.

Ms Baird said: "We will see this case through to the end to get some satisfaction for the thousands of women who are let down, having been rightly encouraged by the police to report domestic violence, when judges free violent perpetrators and their victims are forced into hiding."

Mr Hogg added: “It is clear that this unduly lenient sentence has impacted on victim confidence and has had a wider impact on society’s attempt to stop the widespread crime of domestic violence and abuse.”