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Adam Johnson loses appeal against child sex offences conviction Judge refuses Adam Johnson leave to appeal against conviction
(about 7 hours later)
The footballer Adam Johnson has lost an appeal against his conviction for child sex offences, according to his sister. The footballer Adam Johnson has been refused permission to appeal against his conviction for child sex offences.
Faye Johnson posted a message on Twitter, saying: “Absolutely devastated that the single judge has rejected my brother’s appeal against sentence and conviction. The former Sunderland and England player, 28, was jailed for six years in March for engaging in sexual activity with a 15-year-old fan. Johnson’s trial at Bradford crown court heard that he had kissed and sexually touched the girl in his Range Rover, in a secluded spot in County Durham.
“But I can assure every supporter that it has made me stronger and I will never give up.”
The former Sunderland and England player, 28, was jailed for six years for engaging in sexual activity with a 15-year-old fan.
Johnson’s trial at Bradford crown court heard that he had kissed and sexually touched the girl in his Range Rover, in a secluded spot in County Durham.
The jury found him guilty of one count of sexual activity with a schoolgirl, and cleared him of another count in which she was alleged to have performed a sex act on him. On the first day of his trial Johnson pleaded guilty to one count of grooming and one count of kissing the girl.The jury found him guilty of one count of sexual activity with a schoolgirl, and cleared him of another count in which she was alleged to have performed a sex act on him. On the first day of his trial Johnson pleaded guilty to one count of grooming and one count of kissing the girl.
A statement from his solicitor said: “We have received notification that Adam Johnson’s applications for leave to appeal against his conviction and sentence have been refused by the single judge.
“He is obviously disappointed. Having carefully considered all of the information, we will be lodging renewed applications on conviction and sentence in the coming days.”
Although Johnson’s legal team has lost the first stage of the appeal process, in which a judge decides whether to put the case before three appeal court judges, they can still apply for a court to examine the case again without public funding. The footballer, who once earned £60,000 a week, has 14 days to make a renewed application to appeal.
Johnson’s sister, Faye, posted a message on Twitter on Tuesday morning, saying she was “absolutely devastated” that the judge had rejected her brother’s appeal against his sentence and conviction. “I can assure every supporter that it has made me stronger and I will never give up,” she said.
Johnson filed an appeal against his conviction six days after he was imprisoned and the news was reported on a Facebook page for Johnson’s supporters, previously run by his sister: “Adam’s appeal against his sentence has now been lodged! Thanks everyone for your support it means a lot! X.”
The Facebook page had previously been reported to the trial judge, Jonathan Rose, after several supporters posted abusive comments about Johnson’s victim, who remains anonymous for legal reasons.