THE LAWYERS defending people arrested in Southall on 22 and 13 April have been in a difficult position. On the one hand many of them have felt that by taking part they nave given a sempiance or lusuce and Tairness to a process in which those. qualities have been, on the singularly lacking.
On the other hand they have been constrained from speaking opesty.
sending Chancellor FORTE abnormally high corridor ree. it excessis el! severe sentences and ite lact inat the defendants are being tried over 20 miles away from their homes and the place where the alleged oftences occurred. expected to contain the signatures of nearly all of the 30-plus Hostile The eases have been tried by stipendiary magistrates London specifically sent to Barnet Magistrates' Court for the purpose.
stints. With one exception they have been uniformly hostile to the defence.
The exception was Bourke who sat for two weeks end of October. He convicted 43.3 per cent of the defendants who appeared him, opposed previous average of 90 per cent. He was succeeded by Michael Johnston Wad. 'only" reached an conviction rate of about 70 per cent which led to a further falling off in the overall rate to between 77 and 78 per cent.
However, he infuriated defence lawyers byasking leading questions of police officers to elicit information favourable to the during cross-examination. On one occasion, after a series of interruptions while defence counsel was cross-examining, there was a blazing row as a result of which DUCTSOON counsel and Mr Johnston have both lodged complaints against each other. Vernon Hunte In one case Mr Johnston tried, that of Vernon Hunte, charged with three assaults on police officers, the arresting officer, one PC Mutch oi Rochester Row, admitted that there had been of officers on the stairs of 6 Park View whole THUG.
SINCE YOU HAVE PREVIOUS CONVICTIONS, I SHALL YOU ONE MONTH PRISON evidence against him was extremely shakv. He was convicted and received six months imprisonment, he had no previous convictions. A record?
The Vernon Hunte case raises another interesting point. How many people can throw missiles through the same average sized domestic window al lie same bine • accordig lo loc police and most of the magistrates, it would seem that some 30 people can do so and that each can be separately identified by separate police officer t a range of some 50 feet. Ir memorable case, police actually claimed to nave discerned marks on an individual defendant's face and was believed.
The resolution of such questions would, of course, have been easier if the prosecution had deigned to supply the defence with written statements, something they still refuse to do until FiEt THE Pan GE OFFICE! IS A MAN OF 71 HIGHEST CALIBRE the very last minute before the court begins. although maintained its refusal in the face of pressure from magistrates who have otherwise not been noted for their favourable attitude defence.
the non-service of statements that it 'deplorable brushed aside the excuses. The cases were not trivial, he said, because although the charges themselves may not all be very heavy, the allegations upon which they were based were. (In a number of cases the prosecution officer charges or not made them, although warranted on the alleged facts order prevent the electing trial by jury.)
Mr Badge objections groundless • since ine offered to Police Solicitors' offices to copy the having them' Action 1979.
- the development of technology and democratic decision making an society. But to carry this through means an e technology which oppresses humanity, and i international splatheatio means ownership and control of production out of th TE I TATT 6 751 response. 25 EnTER i De: was short and simpic -Courtstaffi TIRE IE ItTe I sa IDE ME SORE I This article appeared it the Lega Group December
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THE YOUNG MAN IN THE DOCK IS A VIOLENT HIS MOTHER AND FATHER ARE LIARS, AS ARE HIS FOUR WITNESSES