CPS News Brief

First prosecution for stirring up hatred on the grounds of sexual orientation

Updated: Five men have now been charged with stirring up hatred on the grounds of sexual orientation, in the first prosecution of its kind since legislation came into force in March 2010.

Ihjaz Ali, 41, Mehboob Hussain, 44, and Umar Javed, 38, were charged today at Derby Magistrates’ Court with stirring up hatred on the grounds of sexual orientation.

Two other men, Razwan Javed, 30, and Kabir Ahmed, 27, were charged with the same offence yesterday. Crown Prosecution Service lawyer Sue Hemming said:

“We authorised Derbyshire Police to charge these men with offences of distributing threatening written material intending to stir up hatred on the grounds of sexual orientation. The charges relate to the distribution of a leaflet, ‘The Death Penalty?’, outside the Jamia Mosque in Derby in July 2010 and through letterboxes during the same month.

“This is the first ever prosecution for this offence and it is the result of close working between the Crown Prosecution Service and Derbyshire Police.

“Following complaints from the public, Derbyshire Police mounted a thorough investigation. We have carefully reviewed the evidence provided by the police and are satisfied that there is sufficient evidence and it is in the public interest to charge these men.”

The five men will appear together at Derby Magistrates’ Court on 14 February.

It is an offence under section 29C (1) of the Public Order Act 1986 to distribute threatening written material intending to stir up hatred on the grounds of sexual orientation.

For more information on this offence, see our legal guidance.

Lord Taylor convicted of false accounting

John Taylor, known as Lord Taylor of Warwick, has been convicted of six counts of theft by false accounting. Stephen O’Doherty, reviewing lawyer for CPS Special Crime Division, said:

“No-one could sincerely believe that a home in which they had no financial interest, had never lived in and had scarcely visited could count as their main residence, or that it was permissible to claim for driving between Oxford and Parliament when they had not done so. Yet Lord Taylor claimed exactly that and landed the taxpayer with a bill of more than £11,000.

“Today, a jury has seen through his dishonesty by finding him guilty of theft by false accounting. He will now face the consequences of his actions.”

CPS Update - Tuesday 25 January

The jury in the trial of Lord (John) Taylor, accused of six offences of theft by false accounting in relation to parliamentary expenses, is likely to retire today at Southwark CC. We will release a statement once the jury has reached a verdict.

DPP statement on phone hacking - Monday 24 January

Keir Starmer QC, the Director of Public Prosecutions, said:

“It has been agreed following a meeting this morning with Acting Commissioner Tim Godwin and Acting Deputy Commissioner John Yates, that any evidence resulting from recent or new substantive allegations made to the Metropolitan Police Service of mobile voicemail interception arising from the Goodman and Mulcaire case should be subject to the same rigorous assessment as Alison Levitt QC is applying to material already in the possession of the Metropolitan Police Service.

“I have asked Alison Levitt QC (who has had no previous involvement in the case) to take a robust approach with a view to advising whether the Metropolitan Police Service should carry out any further investigation or deciding whether any prosecutions can be brought.

“This builds upon the previous request by the MPS to the CPS to assess all the material relevant to phone hacking.”

CPS Update- Friday 21 January 2011

CPS statement on men accused of burning a copy of the Qu'ran in Gateshead:

Northumbria Chief Crown Prosecutor Wendy Williams said: “This was a serious incident which the vast majority people will rightly find repugnant. However, no matter how unacceptable people may find such behaviour, we can only prosecute if there is sufficient evidence for a realistic prospect of conviction. This case has been subject to a very careful, detailed review. Northumbria Police carried out a thorough investigation and we have taken very great care to consider all the facts in this case.

“The initial focus of the case was on the identity of the person who recorded the incident and posted it online, but it was not possible to identify who this was. Without knowing who it was, we cannot start a prosecution for the publicity of the video.

“We then looked to see whether we could prosecute any of the participants in the actual burning of the Qur’an for an offence of stirring up religious hatred. This offence requires proof that threatening behaviour was used, and there was no evidence which we could use to prove that. “We also looked at a religiously aggravated public order offence. For a case to go ahead, it would be necessary to prove that this act took place within the sight or hearing of anyone likely to be caused harassment, alarm or distress. The individuals involved claimed they did not intend to offend anyone and the incident took place in the back yard of a pub and was seen by very few people at the time. There was no evidence to say that anyone present at the time was upset or was likely to be upset by what they saw.

 “For these reasons we have decided that no one should be prosecuted for an offence arising out of this incident, based on the evidence provided to us. If any further evidence comes to light and is sent to us, we will look at it.

“I must stress that our policy is to prosecute racist and religious crime fairly, firmly and robustly, but this can be done only in cases where there is sufficient evidence for a realistic prospect of conviction.”

DPP announcement on phone hacking - Friday 14 January

The Director of Public Prosecutions, Keir Starmer QC, has today agreed that the Crown Prosecution Service will conduct a comprehensive assessment of all material in the possession of the Metropolitan Police Service relating to phone hacking, following developments in the civil courts.

The exercise will involve an examination of all material considered as part of the original investigation into Clive Goodman and Glenn Mulcaire and any material that has subsequently come to light. The assessment will be carried out by the Principal Legal Advisor, Alison Levitt QC.

The purpose of this assessment is to ascertain whether there is any material which could now form evidence in any future criminal prosecution relating to phone hacking.

Sentencing of PC Stephen Mitchell

Following the sentencing of PC Stephen Mitchell, the CPS Crown Advocate, Paul Simpson, said:

“Stephen Mitchell is a sexual predator. He used and abused his position as a police officer to target vulnerable women for his own sexual gratification.

“The sentence imposed today reflects the gravity of his offending and recognises the danger he poses to women. I would like to pay tribute to the victims in this case. In giving evidence and re-living some of the darkest days of their lives they showed immense courage. Without them this prosecution could not have been brought.”

CPS Update - Tuesday 11 January

Eric Illsley MP has today pleaded guilty at Southwark Crown Court to false accounting in his parliamentary expenses. Simon Clements, Head of the CPS Special Crime Division, said today:

“Eric Illsley, the MP for Barnsley Central, has admitted taking more than £14,000 of the public’s money that he was not entitled to. This was a significant sum of money and the grossly inflated claims he submitted could not be attributed to an oversight or accounting error – indeed he claimed that the expenses system was a way of supplementing members’ salaries. By his guilty pleas he has accepted that he was dishonest in making these claims. As an elected representative, Eric Illsley took advantage of the trust placed in him by his constituents to act honourably on their behalf. Instead, he siphoned off public money into his own pockets and betrayed those who rightly expected the highest standards of integrity from him as a Member of Parliament.”

Note: Eric Illsley was charged in May with dishonestly claiming £27,704. This represented the total value of the claims made for expenses incurred while maintaining his second home. After discussions with the defence, we have agreed that Eric Illsley was entitled to claim for some of those expenses as he had actually incurred them. We have accepted a guilty plea on the basis that the total amount defrauded was £14,204.

CPS Update – Monday 10 January

• We have issued the following explanation of why the trial against environmental protesters accused of breaking into Ratcliffe-on-Soar power station will not go ahead:

“Previously unavailable information that significantly undermined the prosecution’s case came to light on Wednesday, 5 January 2011. In light of this information, the Crown Prosecution Service reviewed the case and decided there was no longer sufficient evidence for a realistic prospect of conviction. There is a hearing today to offer no evidence, thereby discontinuing the case.” 

• Eric Illsley MP will be appearing for a hearing at Southwark Crown Court tomorrow in relation to three counts of false accounting.

CPS Update - Friday 7 January

News

• We have authorised the charging of Paul Wilson with two counts of oral rape of a child. Jayne Salt, Head of CPS West Midlands Complex Casework Unit, said:

“Having carefully examined all of the available information which was submitted to us by the police, we have decided that there is sufficient evidence and it is in the public interest to charge Paul Wilson with two counts of rape in relation an investigation into the Little Star Nursery in Nechells, Birmingham. He faces two charges of oral rape of a child under 13 years, namely two or three years, on dates between 1 January 2009 and 30 July 2010. Paul Wilson will be appearing before Birmingham Magistrates’ Court tomorrow, where an application to remand him in custody will be made by the prosecution.”

• There are reports this morning about the case of Alan Thomas, 79, a man who was charged with the murder of his wife and later committed suicide. We provided this statement yesterday to any journalists who asked:

“It was clear from the outset that this was a tragic case. It was kept under continuous review and we were considering if lesser alternative charges would have been appropriate to put to the jury. We were also in regular contact with the defence team to assist them where possible. However, the evidence clearly demonstrated that a serious offence had been committed and we concluded a prosecution would be in the public interest because a person had been killed, as Mr Thomas admitted.”

Note: Encouraging or assisting a suicide is not a lesser alternative charge if the suspect is believed to have killed another person. The Policy for Prosecutors in Respect of Cases of Encouraging or Assisting Suicide only applies in cases where the suspect has helped another to commit suicide or attempt suicide. 

Diary

• Former MP David Chaytor is being sentenced today at Southwark Crown Court after pleading guilty to three counts of false accounting.

CPS Update - Thursday 6 January

News

• Updated guidance for prosecutors on dealing with Non-Accidental Head Injury (NAHI) cases involving children, formerly known as “Shaken Baby Syndrome” cases, has been published today by the Crown Prosecution Service.

• As widely reported yesterday evening and this morning, a major drug and money laundering operation has been smashed by the CPS and Metropolitan Police. Jonathan McGarry, reviewing lawyer from CPS London, said:

“Today’s hearing in the last of 16 linked trials marks the conclusion of the biggest ever criminal case in London handled by the Crown Prosecution Service and the Metropolitan Police. The investigation began in 2007. It included, in 2008, a drugs bust in which over 100kg of cocaine was seized, still wet with seawater, having arrived on our shores just hours earlier after being loaded by criminals onto an inflatable raft.

“I was on hand to advise the police from ‘day one’ on the sort of evidence that would be admissible in court and would help to build an unbeatable prosecution case. As part of that, the CPS considered over 1000 witness statements. Having also co-ordinated the 16 trials, I have seen dozens of corrupt criminals face justice and a series of drugs and money-laundering networks disbanded.

“I thank the Metropolitan Police for their exhaustive investigation, and pay tribute to the witnesses who bravely came forward to give evidence to ensure these dangerous men would not go unpunished.”

Diary

• Former MP David Chaytor will be sentenced tomorrow at Southwark Crown Court after pleading guilty on 3 December to three counts of false accounting.

• The trial of Eric Illsley MP in relation to Parliamentary expenses begins on Monday 10 January at Southwark Crown Court.

CPS Update - Wednesday 5 January

• There is widespread coverage today of the prosecution of a man who flashed his headlights to warn other drivers of a police speedtrap. We gave this explanation for our decision to prosecute to the media yesterday:

“It was the Crown Prosecution Service’s case that Michael Thompson flashed the lights of his car to warn other drivers of a speed trap ahead. In doing so, he was obstructing a police officer in the execution of their duty, which is a criminal offence contrary to the Police Act 1996, sect 89 (2). The CPS was satisfied that there was sufficient evidence and it was in the public interest to prosecute the defendant with this offence.

"After hearing the prosecution’s case and Michael Thompson’s defence, magistrates at Grimsby Magistrates’ Court found the case against him proved. They decided that he knew his action would cause vehicles to slow down and cause other motorists to avoid the speed trap and prosecution. They fined him £175 and ordered him to pay prosecution costs of £250."

Background information

Police Act 1996, sect 89 (2): Any person who resists or willfully obstructs a constable in the execution of his duty, or a person assisting a constable in the execution of his duty, shall be guilty of an offence and liable on summary conviction to imprisonment for a term not exceeding one month or to a fine not exceeding level 3 on the standard scale, or to both.