JANUARY 2012
Chambers are delighted to announce the appointment of their new Senior Clerk, Daren Milton. Daren started his career with us in 1988 and has vast experience within Chambers and an excellent reputation for leadership and strategic development.
Tim Mousley successfully defended Mathew Hamlen who was tried at Winchester for the murder of an elderly lady called Georgina Edmonds. He was instructed by Chris Gaiger of Gammon Piercey & Gaiger. The trial lasted for more than 2 months, ending with Mr Hamlen’s unanimous acquittal.
The case involved the largest Hampshire police investigation into a murder in 30 years and remains only one of 3 unsolved murders in the county. The case was extremely complex from the point of view of expert forensic and scientific evidence. This included the most modern form of DNA evidence involving likelihood ratios and evidence given by world leaders in the field of statistical genetics: Professor David Balding (UCL) and Professor Stephan Lauritzen (Oxford University).
In addition there was evidence of podiatry and gait analysis.
DECEMBER 2011
Sacked police sergeant to be reinstated
Sergeant Mark Andrews, a custody Sergeant from Wiltshire Constabulary has been reinstated following a successful five day appeal before the Police Appeals Tribunal, held at Swindon Headquarters.
Sergeant Andrews was originally dismissed from the police force in 2010 following a misconduct hearing in December the same year. He faced allegations of gross misconduct arising out of the way in which he was alleged to have dealt with a suspect, Pamela Somerville whilst in his custody.
Sergeant Andrews was dismissed from the police force, despite being cleared of any criminal wrongdoing on Appeal before Mr Justice Bean at Oxford Crown Court where he originally faced charges of causing actual bodily harm to Ms Somerville.
Despite the most recent appeal being upheld and the decision of the panel for the officer to be reinstated, Sergeant Andrews has not yet been formerly reinstated. It is understood that the Chief Constable of Wiltshire Police is awaiting legal advice on the current position as to whether the panel's decision is to be challenged, presumably by Judicial Review.
Sergeant Andrews was represented by Jeremy Barton from 2 King's Bench Walk Chambers. Please click on the following link to the BBC website for further information. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-wiltshire-16007845
NOVEMBER 2011
Michael Selfe, in addition to continuing his busy practice, his duties as a recorder and a Judicial College Tutor Judge has accepted and invitation to address the Maltese Judiciary at their Judicial Studies Board on reforms to criminal procedure. This will take place early in 2012.
He has also been appointed an external examiner in law for the University of Malta. He will be dealing with dissertations and theses on criminal law topics.
SEPTEMBER 2011
Winchester Crown Court Early Guilty Plea Scheme
Many defence solicitors and advocates may already be aware of the Early Guilty Plea scheme currently in operation at Winchester Crown Court. HH Judge Cutler C.B.E., Honorary Recorder of Winchester gave a seminar on the scheme on the 15 September 2011 outlining the procedure and what is expected of the defence.
Bristol, Reading and Winchester Crown Court have now adopted a scheme that piloted in Liverpool. Just over 73% of cases nationally plead guilty and this scheme is designed to facilitate those guilty pleas more efficiently. Included in the Winchester Early Guilty Plea scheme are all adult and youth CPS and Police charged cases, which are sent or committed from North East and North West Hampshire Magistrates’ Courts.
In brief, at or before the committal hearing in the Magistrates’ Court the defence and/or the CPS will identify cases that are suitable for the scheme. At the committal hearing these cases are committed to the Crown Court and allocated an Early Guilty Plea (EGP) hearing.
The expectation is that cases listed for an EGP hearing will plead and be sentenced at that single hearing. Probation would have been aware of the EGP hearing and would have prepared a report in advance.
The goal posts have now been moved when considering what stage defendants are entitled to their maximum credit for a guilty plea. Maximum credit will now be awarded at the EGP hearing. Should the defendant plead not guilty at the EGP hearing and plead guilty at a later hearing, such as the PCMH, he will not be awarded maximum credit for that guilty plea unless a successful submission is made that the EGP hearing was not the first reasonable opportunity for that guilty plea.
The Sentencing Guidelines Council Definitive Guideline for “Reduction in Sentence For A Guilty Plea” by reason of the fact that the EGP scheme is now in existence, applies the presumption that the in all offences (sent or committed) the first reasonable opportunity to enter a guilty plea and to obtain a one-third reduction in sentence will be at an “Early Guilty Plea Hearing” and there will be a smaller reduction thereafter. This presumption is subject to, among other things, the Court being satisfied that the defendant and any legal advisor has had sufficient information about the allegations. The guideline also states that for the avoidance of doubt, to obtain the maximum reduction a defendant must request the Magistrates’ Court to fix an “Early Guilty Plea Hearing” at the Crown Court or agree with the prosecution’s request for such a hearing.
It is hoped, and in order for the scheme to be effective, that defence solicitors will actively engage with the CPS, the court and the probation service or YOS. EGP hearings can be vacated up until two working days before the date of hearing should the client not wish to plead guilty. It is also hoped however, that EGP hearings can easily be turned into a PCMH should the scenario arise where the defendant does not wish to plead guilty.
HH Judge Cutler C.B.E Honorary Recorder of Winchester has issued a Winchester Crown Court Practice Direction-Early Guilty Plea Scheme effective from the 1 January 2011. Soon to be available at http://www.westerncircuit.org.uk/
Written by Berenice Mulvanny
Chambers are delighted to announce that Pupils Kelly Brocklehurst and Ed Hollingsworth have both been offered tenancies with Chambers, effective 3rd October.
AUGUST 2011
Appeal to the Supreme Court
On 1 August 2011 the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom gave permission to appeal from the Court of Appeal in the disability discrimination case of X. v. Mid Sussex Citizens Advice Bureau & another, in which John Lofthouse of these Chambers acts for the Appellant, leading Mr. Spencer Keen of 3 Pump Court.
It is an important case about the rights of volunteers and involves UK and EU law. In the Court of Appeal three parties intervened - the Equality and Human Rights Commission, the Home Secretary and the Christian Institute. The decision of the Court of Appeal is reported at [2011] 2 CMLR 18, [2011] ICR 460 and [2011] IRLR 335.
Jeremy Barton's successful appeal
In the Court of Appeal, Jeremy Barton successfully appealed a sentence of Imprisonment for Public Protection imposed at Southampton Crown Court against a young defendant. The Appeal, heard before the full Court, was allowed on the basis that the previous Judge failed to follow the correct procedure for passing such a sentence. An extended prison sentence was imposed in its place.
Paul Dugdale becomes Circuit Judge
Chambers would like to congratulate Paul Dugdale on his appointment as a Circuit Judge to sit at Isleworth Crown Court.
Paul has been a member of Chambers since completing his pupillage in 1991. He started practice in mixed common law but soon specialised in heavyweight crime. He defended and prosecuted in equal measure in Hampshire and on the Isle of Wight.
We would like to thank Paul for his contribution and dedication to Chambers over the last 20 years and wish him all the best in his well deserved appointment.
JULY 2011
Timothy Mousley Q.C. and Stephen Parish have recently been authorised by the Judicial College to try cases involving Serious Sexual Offences as Recorders in the Crown Court.
JUNE 2011
Jun 9, 2011
Interview in Counsel magazine
Timothy Mousley Q.C. and William Mousley Q.C. feature in the profile section of this months Counsel Magazine. They discuss William Mousley's recent Q.C. appointment, Direct Access work, the Bribery Act and the key aspects of survival at the Criminal Bar.
For the full article please click here
William Mousley QC
Members of Chambers, the clerks, all of the staff, and particularly the Head of Chambers, offer our warmest congratulations to William Mousley on his appointment to one of Her Majesty's Counsel.
We wish him every success and best wishes for the future. His appointment is well deserved and he will bring a great deal to the rank of Queen's Counsel on circuit and elsewhere.
MAY 2011
May 20, 2011
Court of Appeal - wilful neglect of elderly residents
MARCH 2011
Mediation in divorce cases
It has recently been announced that couples setting out to contest the terms of their separation in court will be required to consider mediation, under a new protocol agreed by the judiciary. This usually takes place through one mediation awareness session, where both parties find out what the process can offer before they decide whether it is right for them. This replicates the system already in operation for couples granting legal aid. The requirement has been added tothe Family Proceedings Rules and will come in to effect from 6th April.
FEBRUARY 2011
The Bribery Act
The Bribery Act is facing a second delay in order to give businesses time to deal with its tough new rules. Kenneth Clarke, the Justice Secretary, acted following a lobbying campaign from groups including the CBI, which want the rules, covering how companies handle overseas contracts, to be reconsidered.
The Justice Ministry is still working on guidelines concerning the Act. Once these are published there will be a three month notice period before the act is implemented. The Act cannot now come in to force before May at the earliest.
JANUARY 2011
On 10th February 2011 Adam Feest will be one of the main speakers at a conference organised by Hampshire CPS entitled "Social Care: Protection and Prosecution". This multi-agency conference will cover the detection and prosecution of offences and the protection of vulnerable adults under the provision of the Mental Capacity Act 2005. In the Spring of last year Adam led Rufus Taylor for three months at Southampton Crown Court in what is believed to be the first successful prosecution of its kind under the 2005 Act, and will be talking about the challenges and difficulties that a prosection of that magnitude presented. As a result of the expertise that he has gained in this area, Adam is now instructed by other CPS areas to deal with similar cases.
Gabrielle McAvock has now completed her posting as Crown Counsel attached to the Attorney General's Chambers in Ascencion Island and has returned to her practice at 2 KBW.
DECEMBER 2010
R v Major. (TLR 14.12.10) A Judge can impose restraining order despite acquittal. Judges have the power to make restraining orders against defendants who have been acquitted of a harrassment offence, but had to make clear the factual basis for imposing such an order. Section 5A(1) of the 1997 Act had been inserted to deal with those cases where there was clear evidence that the victim needed protection but where there was insufficient evidence to convict of the charges before the court. The fact that a jury was not sure that the conduct alleged amounted to harassment was not necessarily a ground for concluding that there was no risk of harassment in the future.
The civil burden was to be applied and in applying that standard a court could come to a conclusion that even though the conduct alleged had not been proved to the required criminal standard it had been proved on the balance of probabilities and such a conclusion did not contradict the verdict of a jury or implicitly suggest that the defendant was in fact guilty. The judge was required to identify a factual basis for imposing an order.
Angus Robertson and Charles Cochand have joined chambers. They have moved from 18 Carlton Crescent, Southampton. We welcome them both to 2KBW.
NOVEMBER
Mark Andrews, a Wiltshire Police Sergeant has been cleared of assaulting a 56 year old woman in his custody at Melksham Custody Suite in July 2008. Mark Andrews was represented by 2 King's Bench Walk's Jeremy Barton. The appeal, which lasted four days at Oxford Crown Court, attracted a great deal of media attention and was reported at national level. The Appeal Judge, Mr Justice bean, said after the four-day hearing he was satisfied that Sgt Andrews did not intend to thrown Ms Somerville into the cell and that injuries she suffered "were probably caused by her falling to the floor after letting go of the door frame." Mr Andrews will face misconduct proceedings in December of this year where he will again be represented by Jeremy Barton. For further details from the BBC website, please click on the following link. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-wiltshire-11787126
Adam Feest has recently received an award from the Western OCU Commander of Hampshire for his work on a case involving the prosecution of a number of defendants for mortgage, benefit and credit fraud. In one of a number of fraud and money laundering cases that Adam has been involved in this year and the last, he led Ellie Fargin from Southampton CPS, in a trial lasting nearly seven weeks at Southampton Crown Court. The citation on the award states that,
"following a two and a half year investigation, you are to be commended for your grasp and conduct of the case. You demonstrated the very highest levels of professionalism and advocacy, which led to the satisfactory conviction of those involved".
Proceeds of Crime Act proceedings are ongoing, for which Adam remains instructed.
William Mousley has recently received an award from the Dorset Criminal Justice Board for Partnership of the Year. He headed the team which prosecuted four dangerous male paedophiles who had committed serious sexual assaults on 12 boys over a period of more than 15 years. The trial lasted for 8 weeks and resulted in convictions and lengthy sentences for all four men.
The case involved substantial and highly complex issues of law and fact. William was the Leading Junior and had overall responsibility for the preparation and presentation of the case with a Junior Counsel. He had a large team of police officers, CPS lawyers and administrative support working with him. He and the team were also commended by the trial judge.
William has since been instructed to prosecute in another high-profile case in Bournemouth beginning in March 2011. The charges relate to a man alleged to have been responsible for a long series of rapes and serious assaults on eleven women between 2004 and 2010.
OCTOBER
On the 4th October 2010 major changes in the law of murder came in to force. The defence of provocation has been abolished. It has been replaced by a new partial defence known as "loss of control".
The defence of diminished responsibility has also been amended considerably. The amended act requires the abnormality of mental functioning to be derived from a recognised medical condition. The substantial impairment must arise from the new statutory criteria at ss1 A of the Homicide Act 1957.
Lastly the abnormality must provide an explanation for the Defendant's impairment.
Kelly Brocklehurst and Edward Hollingsworth have now started as pupils in chambers. They will both be completing twelve month pupillages with us. For the first six months Adam Feest will be Kelly's pupil master and Russell Pyne will be Edward's pupil master.
SEPTEMBER
HHJ Boggis QC retired from the circuit bench on 30th September 2010.
We are pleased to announce that Berenice Mulvanney has been offered a tenancy in chambers. She will formally become a tenant on the 1st October upon completion of her pupillage. We wish her all the best for her future in chambers.
The consultation on "Proposals on the provision of court services in Dorset, Hampshire and the Isle of Wight and Wiltshire", closes on 15th SEPTEMBER. Anybody who would like to contribute their views can download the questionnaire at www.ministryofjustice.co.uk from the consultations section.
Family Legal Aid Contracts -The Law Society has been granted an expedited hearing of their challenge to the Legal Services Comission's conduct of the tendering process for family legal aid contracts. The hearing will take place on Tuesday 21 September, with Judgment expected to be delivered on Friday 24 September.
AUGUST
The Criminal Procedure (Amendment) Rules 2010 have been published. They will come in to force on 4th October 2010, amending the The Criminal Procedure Rules 2010. The new and revised rules cover:-
Trial timetables
Applications for evidence to be given via "live" link.
Warrants for arrest, detention and imprisonment.
Sentencing procedures in special cases.
Breach, revocation and amendment of community and other orders.
Enforcement of fines and other orders for payment.
Road traffic penalties.
R v Thompson & Others - Court of Appeal. The court considered six appeals where jury irregularity was alleged. Amongst other issues, internet use by jurors and the provision of written materials to the jury by the judge, are considered.
http://www.balii.org/ew/cases/EWCA/crim/2010/1623.html.
