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After 7 Months, British Hacking Trial Heads to Jury After 7 Months, British Hacking Trial Heads to Jury
(35 minutes later)
LONDON — As the judge concluded one of Britain’s most riveting trials – a seven-month courtroom marathon that exposed the inner workings of the tabloid press and personal lives of two friends of the prime minister – he had this reminder for the jury: “No one is so powerful they can ignore the law.” LONDON — As one of Britain’s most riveting trials — a seven-month courtroom marathon that exposed the inner workings of the tabloid press and the personal lives of two friends of the prime minister — neared its conclusion on Tuesday, the judge gave this reminder to the jury: “No one is so powerful they can ignore the law.”
Among those on trial are Rebekah Brooks, who ran Rupert Murdoch’s British newspaper empire until 2011, and one of her former deputy editors, Andy Coulson, who went on to become the chief spokesman for Prime Minister David Cameron. While the case centers on allegations of hacking into the mobile phones of people in the news, it has also become a guided tour through the precincts of wealth and power in London.Among those on trial are Rebekah Brooks, who ran Rupert Murdoch’s British newspaper empire until 2011, and one of her former deputy editors, Andy Coulson, who went on to become the chief spokesman for Prime Minister David Cameron. While the case centers on allegations of hacking into the mobile phones of people in the news, it has also become a guided tour through the precincts of wealth and power in London.
Since October, Ms. Brooks and Mr. Coulson, ex-lovers and onetime editors of Mr. Murdoch’s now defunct weekly News of The World, have been denounced by prosecutors, defended by lawyers and dissected by the press. They became the subject of the kinds of salacious headlines they used to splash across their pages. On Tuesday, Justice John Saunders offered jurors detailed instructions on how they should consider each count against the defendants. The following day, the 11 jurors (one has had to abandon her duty for personal reasons) are expected to retire to consider their verdict.
They face charges linked to the illegal interception of the voice mail messages of celebrities, royalty and, most controversially, a kidnapped teenager, who was later found dead. They are also accused of condoning payments to public officials for information and, in the case of Ms. Brooks, of conspiring to conceal evidence from the police with the help of her husband, secretary and security chief. A total of seven defendants are on trial, all of whom deny all charges. Since October, Ms. Brooks and Mr. Coulson, ex-lovers and onetime editors of Mr. Murdoch’s weekly News of the World, have been denounced by prosecutors, defended by lawyers and dissected by the press. They became the subject of the kind of salacious headlines they used to splash across their pages.
On Wednesday, the 11 jurors (one has had to abandon her duty for personal reasons) are expected to retire to consider their verdict. They have up to a month to reach a decision, one that is expected to make its impact felt not just in newsrooms across the country but also in Downing Street. Mr. Cameron’s aides worry that conviction of a formerly trusted adviser could revive questions about his judgment ahead of next year’s general election. They face charges linked to the illegal interception of the voice mail messages of celebrities, royalty and, most controversially, a kidnapped teenager, who was later found dead. They are also accused of condoning payments to public officials for information and, in the case of Ms. Brooks, conspiring to conceal evidence from the police with the help of her husband, secretary and security chief. Seven defendants are on trial, all of whom deny all charges.
The trial has also become a test of whether Britain’s infamously aggressive tabloid culture – the six-figure price tags paid for scoops, the scavenging in celebrity trash cans, the relentless invasion of privacy – can be tamed to prevent similar transgressions in the future. It has exposed the cozy ties between the media, politicians and the police, and in particular the influence of Mr. Murdoch’s newspapers, which have dominated the industry in Britain for many years. The trial has also become a test of whether Britain’s infamously aggressive tabloid culture — the six-figure prices paid for scoops, the scavenging in celebrity trash cans, the relentless invasion of privacy — can be tamed to prevent similar transgressions in the future. It has exposed the cozy ties among the media, politicians and the police, and in particular the influence of Mr. Murdoch’s newspapers, which have dominated the industry in Britain for many years.
Many in the British establishment have been ensnared or embarrassed by the investigation, including the former prime minister Tony Blair who, it emerged during the trial, offered to act as an “unofficial adviser” to Ms. Brooks and Mr. Murdoch. The case has involved the work of more than 160 Scotland Yard police officers and staff members and cited at least 1,000 people from politics, sports and the media, including Prince William and his wife, the Duchess of Cambridge, who probably had their phones hacked. In his instructions to the jury, Justice Saunders warned the jurors not to be “dazzled” by the defendants.
Indeed, “Hacking Gate,” as some here call it, has had all the ingredients of a juicy tabloid story: tales of Mr. Cameron inviting Ms. Brooks to his birthday party; computers hidden in trash bags (along with pornography belonging to Ms. Brooks’s husband); and a steamy love letter read in court documenting the on-an-off intimacy between Ms. Brooks and Mr. Coulson. Prosecutors asserted that because of their relationship, if one of them knew about phone hacking, both are likely to have.
Justice John Saunders offered jurors detailed instructions on how they should consider each count against the defendants. He also ordered them not to be “dazzled” by the couple’s glamour.
“Some of those on trial enjoyed a lifestyle you can only dream of, not just in financial terms but influence they brought to bear,” Justice Saunders said. “They were friends of politicians; they are friends of the stars.”“Some of those on trial enjoyed a lifestyle you can only dream of, not just in financial terms but influence they brought to bear,” Justice Saunders said. “They were friends of politicians; they are friends of the stars.”
“You do not envy them their success or be dazzled by it,” he added. “Respect their success; but everyone is subject to the law of the land – no one is so powerful they can ignore the law.” “You do not envy them their success or be dazzled by it,” he added. “Respect their success; but everyone is subject to the law of the land.”
Justice Saunders said the details of the defendants’ personal lives that were revealed in court had not been raised for sympathy. “You have heard about it because it has some relevance to some aspect of the case,” he said. The jurors have up to a month to reach a decision, one that is expected to make its impact felt not just in newsrooms across the country but also in Downing Street. Mr. Cameron’s aides worry that the conviction of a formerly trusted adviser could revive questions about his judgment ahead of next year’s general election.
“Take no account of the vitriol leveled at Rebekah Brooks and Andy Coulson on Twitter and in other places,” he said. “You all feel sympathy for Rebekah Brooks who had to suffer that abuse, but that can’t affect any verdict.” Many in the British establishment have been ensnared or embarrassed by the investigation, including former Prime Minister Tony Blair, who, according to evidence presented at the trial, offered to act as an “unofficial adviser” to Ms. Brooks and Mr. Murdoch. The prosecution has said at least 1,000 people from politics, sports and the media, including Prince William and his wife, the Duchess of Cambridge, probably had their phones hacked.
The case centers on the practice of illegally intercepting voice mails remotely, which took place from 2000 to 2006 and took advantage of the fact that many people never changed the default access codes provided by mobile operators. Indeed, the case had all the ingredients of a juicy tabloid story: tales of Mr. Cameron's inviting Ms. Brooks to his birthday party; computers hidden in trash bags (along with pornography belonging to Ms. Brooks’s husband); and a steamy love letter read in court documenting the on-and-off intimacy between Ms. Brooks and Mr. Coulson. Prosecutors asserted that because of their relationship, if one of them knew about phone hacking, both are likely to have known.
In 2007, a private investigator employed by the News of the World, Glenn Mulcaire, and the paper’s then editor overseeing coverage of the royal family, Clive Goodman, who went to jail after pleaded guilty to intercepting voice mails. Mr. Mulcaire has admitted targeting the mobile phone of the murdered teenager, Milly Dowler, in April 2002 when Ms. Brooks was editor and Mr. Coulson her deputy. Several former news editors have also admitted being aware of the practice. The case centers on the practice of illegally intercepting voice mails remotely, which took place from 2000 to 2006 and took advantage of the fact that many people never changed the default access codes provided by mobile phone operators.
The jury members now need to decide whether they believe Ms. Brooks and Mr. Coulson, who say they were unaware of the phone hacking at the time. Ms. Brooks, who was on vacation the week the story ran but spoke to Mr. Coulson by phone, has maintained that she learned about the hacking of Dowler’s phone only when the story broke in The Guardian in 2011. In 2007, a private investigator employed by The News of the World, Glenn Mulcaire, and the paper’s editor overseeing coverage of the royal family, Clive Goodman, went to jail after pleaded guilty to intercepting voice mails. Mr. Mulcaire has admitted targeting the mobile phone of the murdered teenager, Milly Dowler, in April 2002 when Ms. Brooks was editor and Mr. Coulson her deputy. Several former news editors have also admitted being aware of the practice.
“You will have to decide about whether she has lied to you about when she became aware of the hacking of Milly Dowler,” Justice Saunders told the jury. The jury members now need to decide whether they believe Ms. Brooks and Mr. Coulson, who say they were unaware of the phone hacking at the time. Ms. Brooks has maintained that she learned about the hacking of Milly Dowler’s phone only when the story broke in The Guardian in 2011.
But he warned, “The charge is conspiracy – the prosecution have to prove not only knowledge but that she agreed to continue after she knew about it.” Whatever the verdict — and it could be followed by appeals — the case has already left its mark, said Roy Greenslade, a journalism professor at City University in London. News editors have been humbled and politicians put on notice, he said.
Whatever the verdict – and it could be followed by appeals – the case has already left its mark, said Roy Greenslade, a journalism professor at City University in London. News editors have been humbled and politicians put on notice, he said. “After years of Wild West activity the sheriff has ridden into town,” Professor Greenslade said. “If you look at the tabloid end of the British press, it’s cleaner than it’s ever been before.”
“After years of Wild West activity the sheriff has ridden into town,” Mr. Greenslade said. “If you look at the tabloid end of the British press, it’s cleaner than it’s ever been before.”