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Nigel Evans case: the CPS needs everyone else to keep a cool head too Nigel Evans case: the CPS needs everyone else to keep a cool head too
(about 17 hours later)
Nigel Evans, former deputy speaker at the House of Commons, has become the latest in a list of public figures to be cleared of sex charges. He was charged with one rape, five sexual assaults, one attempted sexual assault and two indecent assaults. David Davies MP, a former shadow home secretary, has accused the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) of putting a larger number of lesser cases in order to bring one serious case when prosecuting sexual offences. Three of Evans's alleged victims had told police that they did not think any crime had taken place and they did not wish to press charges. Now Evans has been exonerated.Nigel Evans, former deputy speaker at the House of Commons, has become the latest in a list of public figures to be cleared of sex charges. He was charged with one rape, five sexual assaults, one attempted sexual assault and two indecent assaults. David Davies MP, a former shadow home secretary, has accused the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) of putting a larger number of lesser cases in order to bring one serious case when prosecuting sexual offences. Three of Evans's alleged victims had told police that they did not think any crime had taken place and they did not wish to press charges. Now Evans has been exonerated.
His relief this weekend, after months of uncertainty, humiliating and demeaning public exposure and a lengthy court case, must be immense. How he restitches his public and private life will be a major challenge. Inevitably, again, in the wake of the Jimmy Savile scandal, attention has turned to the failed prosecutions of a series of celebrities including Coronation Street actors William Roache, Michael Le Vell and Andrew Lancel.His relief this weekend, after months of uncertainty, humiliating and demeaning public exposure and a lengthy court case, must be immense. How he restitches his public and private life will be a major challenge. Inevitably, again, in the wake of the Jimmy Savile scandal, attention has turned to the failed prosecutions of a series of celebrities including Coronation Street actors William Roache, Michael Le Vell and Andrew Lancel.
Lord Macdonald QC, a former director of public prosecutions, last week warned: "What the CPS needs to avoid… is going on a mission and losing perspective. This particularly applies to historical cases which have garnered a lot of publicity. You have to keep a cool head."Lord Macdonald QC, a former director of public prosecutions, last week warned: "What the CPS needs to avoid… is going on a mission and losing perspective. This particularly applies to historical cases which have garnered a lot of publicity. You have to keep a cool head."
Alison Saunders, director of public prosecutions, has denied that the CPS is "star-struck". The CPS looked at the evidence in the Evans case, she explained, and decided there was a realistic prospect of conviction. Juries have a higher test – that they are satisfied beyond all reasonable doubt. Ms Saunders said that, as is normal with acquittals, she will look at the Evans case to see if there are lessons to be learned. The robustness of witnesses could be a good place to start. However, that may not satisfy the rising tide of criticism of the police and the CPS. Fairness needs to operate. The CPS and the police are in a difficult position.Alison Saunders, director of public prosecutions, has denied that the CPS is "star-struck". The CPS looked at the evidence in the Evans case, she explained, and decided there was a realistic prospect of conviction. Juries have a higher test – that they are satisfied beyond all reasonable doubt. Ms Saunders said that, as is normal with acquittals, she will look at the Evans case to see if there are lessons to be learned. The robustness of witnesses could be a good place to start. However, that may not satisfy the rising tide of criticism of the police and the CPS. Fairness needs to operate. The CPS and the police are in a difficult position.
For years, both were castigated precisely for not taking action on historical cases. Again, the unpredictability of witnesses (one in the Evans case changed his evidence almost entirely) is a feature of many cases involving, for instance, domestic violence and sex abuse, the result of fear or confused loyalties towards the alleged perpetrator. An investigation by Channel 4 News broadcast last week interviewed 70 present and former Westminster staffers: 40% claimed to have received unwanted advances. While some saw these advances as a "joke", they might have amounted to sexual harassment or assault and the public expects the police and the CPS to uphold the law.For years, both were castigated precisely for not taking action on historical cases. Again, the unpredictability of witnesses (one in the Evans case changed his evidence almost entirely) is a feature of many cases involving, for instance, domestic violence and sex abuse, the result of fear or confused loyalties towards the alleged perpetrator. An investigation by Channel 4 News broadcast last week interviewed 70 present and former Westminster staffers: 40% claimed to have received unwanted advances. While some saw these advances as a "joke", they might have amounted to sexual harassment or assault and the public expects the police and the CPS to uphold the law.
The CPS has faced swingeing cuts of 27%. Even before the recession, it was overstretched and understaffed. Yet still it maintains an extraordinary 85% conviction rate, including highly complex cases; almost 690,000 convictions in 2012-13. Every organisation can improve and the CPS is certainly no exception, but criticism of the kind now prevailing carries the danger that it will encourage only the easier cases to be investigated and prosecuted. The result could be that the rich and famous, along with the less affluent and unknown, gain unwarranted immunity. Now that would be unjust.The CPS has faced swingeing cuts of 27%. Even before the recession, it was overstretched and understaffed. Yet still it maintains an extraordinary 85% conviction rate, including highly complex cases; almost 690,000 convictions in 2012-13. Every organisation can improve and the CPS is certainly no exception, but criticism of the kind now prevailing carries the danger that it will encourage only the easier cases to be investigated and prosecuted. The result could be that the rich and famous, along with the less affluent and unknown, gain unwarranted immunity. Now that would be unjust.
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