Lord Janner will face trial – maybe
Lord Greville Janner of Braunstone: It’s been 70 days since the Crown Prosecution Service decided not to prosecute Lord Janner on grounds of his poor health.
The Telegraph: Alison Saunders: My Lord Janner decision could be reversed”
Could be?
Alison Saunders, the Director of Public Prosecutions, has conceded that if her decision not to prosecute Lord Janner with child sex offences is reversed by a formal review she will abide by that ruling…
She’d have no choice.
Ms Saunders told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme: “There is a victims right to review going on. We have a process which has been activated and we are waiting for the outcome of that. The outcome of that could be that my decision is upheld or it could be that it is reversed. And I have said that I will abide by that advice that we’ve sought and I will abide by that advice.”
Top lawyer vows to sticks to rules. Read all about it!
The Times: “Janner ‘will face justice’ over child sex abuse claims”
Will. Not could?
The decision by the Crown Prosecution Service not to prosecute Lord Janner over allegations that he was a serial child abuser is set to be overturned.
Wow!
A senior barrister who has spent several weeks examining the evidence as part of an independent review has concluded that there should be a hearing — the first step towards a full trial, according to the Daily Mail.
Ah! Janner is 86. He’s ill. How long will the hearing process take?
Daily Mail: “Janner WILL face justice: Top barrister to recommend DPP’s decision is over-ruled so case against Labour peer IS heard in court”
The development will pile pressure on Mrs Saunders, who has suffered a torrid two months amid questions over her handling of the Janner affair. She is expected to face renewed calls from critics to consider her position.
She looks doomed.
The extraordinary twist in the case comes after a group of Janner’s alleged victims applied for a formal review of the decision not to charge him. The appeal was launched after Mrs Saunders ruled the peer should not be charged on health grounds, despite saying there was enough evidence to prosecute him for 22 sex offences against nine people. She also ruled out holding a trial of facts, which can be used when suspects are unable to enter pleas or instruct lawyers.
Adding:
More than a dozen people came forward to claim he abused them during the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s. His family has repeatedly denied he is connected to any wrongdoing.
Simon Danczuk, the MP for Rochdale , tells the Guardian:
“I am pleased to hear the suggestion that Janner will finally face justice: the alleged victims deserve this. The allegations against him are horrific, and we need to hear the facts before a court.
“All suggestions are that Saunders reached the wrong conclusion in April and this is not the first time she has made a major mistake, She has struggled in some of her decisions to pursue journalists through the courts, too. Her job is all about judgment.”
Such are the facts.
Posted: 27th, June 2015 | In: Politicians, Reviews Comment | TrackBack | Permalink
