Kieran Brockhouse (KB) had been charged with two counts of supporting terror groups: the Ulster Defence Association and the Ulster Freedom Fighters. KB had flown flags for these groups outside his house on two occasions in 2021 and 2022 and uploaded them to social media. KB’s case was that he was a member of the Orange Order who march on 12th July to commemorate the Battle of Boyne wearing bowler hats and white gloves as a mark of respect and peace. The flags were purchased in Ireland and flown innocently and not out of any intention to express support or invite support for the proscribed groups. The defence relied on the fact that KB did not know the groups had been proscribed and since the Good Friday Agreement signed in April 1998, thought the groups seized to exist. The jury acquitted KB of all charges. Gulam Ahmed had been instructed by Mohammed Naser of M&N Solicitors- Serious Crime and Fraud specialist.   https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-birmingham-67925271

Nina Grahame KC and Jane Greenhalgh successfully defended Brandon White, a 21 year old man of good character following a 5 week trial at Manchester Crown Court. A complex and historic feud between 2 Manchester families had developed after another family member’s death in 2018. That death had been witnessed by the victim in this case, Warren Burns, who died after the infliction of multiple injuries in the bedroom of his partner’s home after she and the couple’s 10 week old baby had fled into the garden. Nina and Jane’s client admitted presence and the use of limited, ineffectual violence, but denied any participation in unlawful violence, acting only in lawful defence of his uncle. In addition to consideration of non-accidental presence and defence of another in this joint enterprise case, an additional crucial issue for the jury was the relevance of honest but mistaken belief in self-defence. By detailed analysis, the jury were urged to carefully dissect and dismiss the prosecution ‘theories’ about BW’s involvement and the co-defendant’s lies. BW’s credibility was of particular importance as his evidence incriminated RW, who was convicted of murder. DW was convicted of manslaughter. BW’s partner, tried for her alleged role in knowingly assisting him after the event, was acquitted. The verdicts followed more than 9 hours of jury deliberation over 3 days. Nina and Jane combined their extensive experience of defending young people in joint enterprise cases, an area of law currently the subject of proposed and, in our view, much needed revision. https://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/news/greater-manchester-news/warren-burns-white-murder-manchester-28288877?utm_source=linkCopy&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=sharebar Nina and Jane were instructed by Ahmad Jawad of Central Chambers Law whose excellent preparation made a valuable contribution to this outcome.

Sarah Day led Fatima Laher in a 10 week multi-handed human trafficking trial at Winchester Crown Court, instructed by Sukhy Ark at Abbey Law. Their client was acquitted of conspiracy to facilitate travel with a view to exploitation under s2 Modern Slavery Act 2015. The prosecution case centred around prostitutes working in the Swindon area who had come from Romania. The Crown alleged that Sarah and Fatima’s client controlled the prostitution work of his girlfriend on behalf of an organised crime group. In the same trial James Walker led Dr Anthony Richardson to an acquittal of human trafficking for another of the principal defendants – instructed by Raz Mann of Mann & Co Solicitors.

Adam Kane KC secured the acquittal of a solicitor charged with second limb fraudulent trading following 11 weeks of evidence at trial in Leeds. The defendant was acquitted at the direction of the Judge at the close of the prosecution case. This was a retrial of a case that had been discharged after 6 weeks of evidence in 2022 after jury researches. The case involved the alleged mis-selling, on a boiler-room model, of wealth protection schemes designed to avoid liability for claw-back of local authority funded residential care home fees. The solicitor and his partner were alleged to have traded fraudulently by providing ‘execution-only’ legal services drafting and registering trusts and lasting powers of attorney to service companies unregulated by Legal Services Act, who made guarantees of their efficacy when cold-calling and home visiting member of the public. The case is one of the National Trading Standards cases prosecuted  by York City Council. Nina Grahame KC has been involved in challenges in the Court of Appeal to Trading Standards’ approach to prosecuting cases of this type and complexity in other proceedings in which she and m co-defend. In the current case, the approach of Trading Standards to criticism of the scheme as a £5.3 million fraud was highly controversial, TS relying on the opinion evidence of a practising solicitor as expert evidence of the law of estate planning and regulatory good practise. Multiple complainants were put before the jury inconsistently with the evidence of ‘whistle-blower’ sales-staff as to the basis on which they bought the trust deeds. Following the rulings at half-time, other defendants were acquitted when the Prosecution offered no evidence against the remaining defendants.  Adam, leading Michael Lavery, was instructed by Sarah Housley at Cunningham’s, Manchester.

By Dr Felicity Gerry KC I am delighted to see our campaign for the posthumous exoneration of Christine Keeler being covered for 4 days in The Mirror. The campaign is being brought by her son Seymour Platt who was left the task of telling her real story in her will. At the height of the “Profumo Scandal” Christine was the victim of a violent assault by a man called Lucky Gordon. He was prosecuted but sacked his lawyers and represented himself. In cross examination of her, he admitted assaulting her. She told the police she had not mentioned two other witnesses because they asked her not to. On the suggestion that she had lied about about who was present, Gordon’s conviction was quashed by the Court of Appeal (the court unusually expressing their belief that Christine was telling the truth). Nonetheless she was prosecuted for perjury and PCJ. She pleaded guilty and was sent to prison. She was under terrible pressure. For example, news reports account members of the public throwing eggs at her outside the Old Bailey in Stephen Ward’s trial where she was also wrongly accused of being a sex worker. Ward took his life before verdicts on whether it could be shown he was not living on her “immoral” earnings. These events framed Christine Keeler appallingly for the rest of her life, as Seymour Platt has explained in the Mirror. The law on the charges Christine faced (despite being a victim) only applies if there is a “material lie”. That Christine did not state that two other men were present when she was violently assaulted was totally irrelevant, especially as a proper investigation would have revealed they saw the attack and because her attacker admitted in court he assaulted her The Criminal Cases Review Commission is now quite properly investigating the case. The implications of the comments her silk Jeremy Hutchinson QC made at the time made it obvious she pleaded guilty when she was not, and she was shamed, unlike others whose reputation has been restored. There is a real risk that she was wrongly convicted. Sending her to prison was dreadful and she rightly deserves a posthumous exoneration. It would also go a long way to reframing a case that is the epitome of slut shaming, fitting with modern CPS guidance on violence against women and girls

An update concerning the involvement of members of Libertas in Operations Destin and Barbados.   Operation Barbados is a series of trials prosecuted by two silks and one junior, which also will span 2023 to 2025 at Southwark. The case alleges large scale fraud in the burgeoning VOIP industry. 6 members of chambers defend in these trials including the first in the sequence which began in September 2023. The first in a series of three trials –  Operation Destin prosecuted by the Special Fraud Division alleging a substantial fraud in relation to timeshare investors and buy back schemes – commenced in October 2023 which eight members of Libertas defending four of the defendants.  The trials will span 2023 and 2024 at Southwark. https://www.law360.com/articles/1730769/trial-over-27m-monster-credits-timeshare-scam-kicks-off

Dr Felicity Gerry KC is a member of the Art Not Evidence campaign mentioned in the Times Law section today. The Art Not Evidence mission is to fight for a fairer criminal justice system by advocating for a restriction on the use of creative and artistic expression as evidence in criminal trials. The group is collaborating with musicians, community groups, and human rights organisations to campaign for law reform and promote the decriminalisation of rap music and creative expression more broadly. The hope is to create a more equitable and inclusive society that respects the freedom of artistic expression for all. In broader terms Felicity has explained in our webinar on the use of rap music in criminal trials creates an unfair focus on character and culture rather than any individual contribution to a crime which risks unsafe verdicts.   Read about Art Not Evidence and the open letter to the Secretary of State for Justice here https://artnotevidence.org/our-mission/ Read the Times Law article by Catherine Baksi article here https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/concern-over-use-of-drill-music-in-court-d229p00ng

Felicity joined a coalition of lawyers, academics, psychiatrists, and organisations with significant interest in, and long experience working with, perinatal women in the criminal justice system in making a submission to the Sentencing Council consultation led by WE LEVEL UP. Question 17: ‘Do you agree with the proposed new mitigating factor and expanded explanation relating to pregnancy? If not, please provide any alternative suggestions. Answer: NO: The Level Up submission relies on a wealth of authoritative research to demonstrate that the current proposal is insufficient and there should be a new mitigating factor which specifies that pregnancy, maternity, and the postnatal period is relevant to the sentencing of a female defendant convicted of any crime, and that an associated explanation should be included in all sentencing remarks. The submission makes alternative suggestions including additional measures should also be introduced to avoid custody where a pregnant woman’s sentence is over the custody threshold, or she is facing a mandatory minimum sentence. In practical terms, this means: Where a woman is on the cusp of custody, a non-custodial sentence must be considered. Where a woman is over the custody threshold and facing a custodial sentence of up to 2 years, a suspended sentence must be considered based on the significant harm custody or separation causes to pregnant and postnatal women and their dependants. Where a woman is facing a sentence of over two years, or a mandatory minimum sentence, pregnancy, and the postnatal period to constitute an ‘exceptional circumstance’ that makes the imposition of the minimum term a disproportionate sentence and would justify not imposing the statutory minimum sentence. This approach gives due weight to the significant harm caused by custody to the pregnant woman, her unborn child and a baby who may be born in prison. It also prioritises the best interests of the child over separation and fits with the Ministry of Justice Female Offender Strategy which identifies that “custody is particularly damaging for women” and that many female offenders could be more successfully supported in the community, where reoffending outcomes are better. The impact of custody on a woman who is pregnant is very likely to cause significant harm to the physical and mental health of both the mother and the child. Without a full medical and social picture of the pregnant or postnatal woman, there is a significant risk that sentencers will be unwittingly sentencing a mother to a stillbirth, a baby to death or other serious complications, or an infant to developmental trauma. and the sentencer should give reasons for all sentences of pregnant or postnatal women addressing the known research and data. Download the submission by clicking this link Find out more about Level Up here https://www.welevelup.org/