Latest news with #miscarriageofjustice
BBC News
4 days ago
- Politics
- BBC News
Peter Sullivan murder miscarriage of justice payout 'not enough'
An increase in compensation due to a man who spent 38 years in jail on a murder conviction that was recently overturned "does not go far enough", his lawyer has said. Peter Sullivan, 68, has been described as the victim of Britain's longest-running miscarriage of justice, having been jailed in 1987 for the brutal murder of 21-year-old Diane Sindall in Birkenhead. The Ministry of Justice is to raise the amount paid to people wrongly jailed for more than a decade to £1.3m from £1m. But Mr Sullivan's lawyer Sarah Myatt said the increase was only half the rate of inflation since the £1m cap came in in 2008. Inflation since the cap's introduction in 2008 stands at 68%, as measured by the Consumer Price Index (CPI). Ms Myatt said "[the increase is] a very small step forward", adding: "I don't think it's enough at all."The Ministry of Justice (MoJ) said the increase would create "a fairer and better justice system". 'No amount' Mr Sullivan was freed when his conviction was quashed by the Court of Appeal in May, after new testing of preserved semen samples produced a DNA profile that pointed to another, unknown, Police has since re-opened its investigation into Miss Sindall's murder but the force said "unfortunately" searches of the national DNA database had not come up with any Myatt said Mr Sullivan had "lost 38 years of his life, nearly four decades of his life"."There is not any amount that would be able to compensate somebody for that."She said the amount victims are eligible for should be "sufficient to mean that somebody can then continue the rest of their life in utmost comfort".Justice Secretary Shabana Mahmood said: "Fairness is the ideal that underpins our justice system. Where it has failed to meet that ideal, victims of devastating miscarriages of justice must be able to rebuild their lives."This uplift will ensure victims are compensated for the crimes they did not commit and the years they cannot get back."Once eligible, the level of compensation will be decided by an independent Malkinson, 58, from Manchester, who spent 17 years in prison for a rape crime he did not commit, has described the proposed cap increase as "insulting". Listen to the best of BBC Radio Merseyside on Sounds and follow BBC Merseyside on Facebook, X, and Instagram. You can also send story ideas via Whatsapp to 0808 100 2230.
Telegraph
17-07-2025
- Telegraph
Man jailed after corrupt officer's evidence cleared 20 years after his death
A man who was jailed on the basis of a corrupt police officer's evidence has had his name cleared 20 years after his death. Errol Campbell, who died in 2004, had his convictions for theft and conspiracy to steal from a goods depot in south London quashed at the Court of Appeal on Thursday. He was found guilty in April 1977 and sentenced at the Old Bailey to a total of 18 months imprisonment in relation to thefts from the Bricklayers Arms Goods Depot, where he was a British Rail employee. The case against him was led by DS Derek Ridgewell, a discredited British Transport Police officer. Giving his judgment on Thursday, Lord Justice Holroyde, sitting with Mr Justice Butcher and Mr Justice Wall, said it was with 'regret' that the court could not undo Mr Campbell's suffering. He added: 'We can however, and do, allow the appeal brought on his behalf and quash his conviction. We hope that will at least bring some comfort to Mr Campbell's family who survive.' Lord Justice Holroyde said Campbell 'took the miscarriage of justice which he suffered and his wrongful convictions to his grave'. He continued: 'Mr Campbell Sr maintained his innocence for the rest of his life. He regarded himself, with justification, as a victim of racism.' The Crown Prosecution Service did not oppose the appeal. 'Shadow over administration of justice' Ridgewell led the case against Campbell and several others, but along with colleagues DC Douglas Ellis and DC Alan Keeling, later pleaded guilty to stealing from the same goods depot. Campbell unsuccessfully appealed against his convictions in 1978. His son submitted an application to the Criminal Cases Review Commission (CCRC) in Sept 2024, with the help of the charity APPEAL. Following a review, the CCRC found there was a real possibility that, like the convictions of 11 other people that have been referred to the court, Campbell's convictions would be quashed, and it referred the convictions in Feb 2025. Henry Blaxland KC, representing Campbell, told the court it was dealing with victims of miscarriage of justice brought about by 'state crime'. He added the case 'throws a shadow over the administration of justice and led to loss of confidence not only in the police, but in the legal system as a whole'. Mr Blaxland also said the effect of the convictions of Campbell had been 'incalculable' and read a statement from his son, Errol Campbell Jr, to the court. Mr Campbell Jr said the first time his father had returned from the police station, 'he had bruises on him where he said he had been hit by the police'. Mr Campbell Jr said he remembered helping to bathe his father after this, and that is something he will 'never forget'. He continued: 'He called it n----- hunting by the police.' The court heard that after Campbell was released from prison he went to America to 'get away from his experience' and 'took up heavy drinking'. Mr Campbell Jr said in his statement: 'He was a ruined man.' Reading a statement on his behalf outside the Royal Courts of Justice, Matt Foot, Mr Campbell Jr's solicitor, said: 'The British Transport Police knew that Det Sgt Derek Ridgewell was corrupt and they let him carry on regardless with what he was doing. 'My dad always said he was innocent and today that's finally been confirmed, almost 50 years later. 'He came to England in the Windrush generation and worked for years for British Rail. The conviction caused absolute misery to my dad and our family. 'Due to the shame and disgrace of this conviction, he found it difficult to get employment, so much so that he fled the country. On his return, he became an alcoholic and couldn't hold down a lollipop man's job.' In August 2023 the CCRC referred the convictions of Campbell's co-defendants, Saliah Mehmet and Basil Peterkin, after it tracked down their family members. The convictions were quashed in January last year. In 1980, Ridgewell, Ellis and Keeling pleaded guilty to conspiracy to steal from the Bricklayers Arms Depot. Ridgewell died in prison before he had completed his sentence. In a previous judgment, the court found their criminal activities between January 1977 and April 1978 resulted in the loss from the depot of goods to the value of about £364,000 – 'an enormous sum of money at that time'. Referring to the ruling in Mehmet and Peterkin's cases, Lord Justice Holroyde said fresh evidence as to the 'dishonesty' of the three British Transport Police officers had underpinned a series of CCRC references to the court. Final member of 'Stockwell Six' cleared Separately on Thursday, the Court of Appeal also quashed the conviction of Ronald De Souza, the final member of the 'Stockwell Six'. The group of black men were accused of trying to rob Ridgewell, and were all arrested on the London Underground while on a night out on Feb 18 1972. The CCRC referred De Souza's conviction for attempted robbery to the Court of Appeal after his co-defendants, Paul Green, Courtney Harriot, Cleveland Davidson and Texo Johnson, had their names cleared in 2021. Lord Justice Holroyde said it was 'very regrettable that none of the cases in which defendants have been convicted in reliance of the evidence was reviewed by the British Transport Police'. Quashing De Souza's convictions, he added: 'We regret that this court cannot now put right all that he has suffered. However, we can and do allow his appeal and quash his conviction.' Charlie Doyle, the Assistant Chief Constable of British Transport Police, has said he is 'disgusted' by the actions of Ridgewell after the Court of Appeal quashed Campbell's conviction. Mr Doyle said: 'We are sincerely sorry to those affected by the criminal actions of former BTP Detective Sergeant Derek Ridgewell, whose appalling actions in the 1970s and 1980s led to the criminalisation of innocent people. 'We're continuing to review records relating to his corrupt practices, which includes those relating to officers who were associated with Det Sgt Ridgewell or may have assisted him in his criminal activity, and the review team has recently been provided with additional resources to support its work. 'I am disgusted by the actions of Derek Ridgewell, and while we know we can't change the past, his actions do not represent the BTP of today. 'We continue to actively pursue a criminal investigation into the actions of those involved and will present a file to the CPS for consideration once we have completed our enquiries.'
The Independent
17-07-2025
- The Independent
Man jailed based on corrupt officer's evidence has name posthumously cleared
A man who was jailed on the basis of a corrupt police officer's evidence has had his name cleared posthumously at the Court of Appeal. Errol Campbell, who died in 2004, had his convictions for theft and conspiracy to steal from a goods depot in south London quashed at the London court on Thursday. He was found guilty in April 1977 and sentenced to a total of 18 months' imprisonment at the Old Bailey in relation to thefts from the Bricklayers Arms Goods Depot, where he was a British Rail employee. The case against him was led by the discredited British Transport Police officer DS Derek Ridgewell. Giving his judgment on Thursday, Lord Justice Holroyde, sitting with Mr Justice Butcher and Mr Justice Wall, said it was with 'regret' that the court could not undo Mr Campbell's suffering. He added: 'We can however, and do, allow the appeal brought on his behalf, and quash his conviction. 'We hope that will at least bring some comfort to Mr Campbell's family who survive.' Lord Justice Holroyde said Mr Campbell 'took the miscarriage of justice which he suffered and his wrongful convictions to his grave'. He continued: 'Mr Campbell Sr maintained his innocence for the rest of his life. 'He regarded himself, with justification, as a victim of racism.' The Crown Prosecution Service did not oppose the appeal. Ridgewell led the case against Mr Campbell and several others, but along with colleagues DC Douglas Ellis and DC Alan Keeling, later pleaded guilty to stealing from the same goods depot. Mr Campbell unsuccessfully appealed his conviction in 1978. His son submitted an application to the Criminal Cases Review Commission (CCRC) in September 2024, with the help of the charity APPEAL. Following a review, the CCRC found there was a real possibility that, like the convictions of 11 other people that have been referred to the court, Mr Campbell's conviction would be quashed, and it referred the conviction in February 2025. Henry Blaxland KC, representing Mr Campbell, told the court it was dealing with victims of miscarriage of justice brought about by 'state crime'. He added the case 'throws a shadow over the administration of justice and led to loss of confidence not only in the police, but in the legal system as a whole'. Mr Blaxland also said the effect of the convictions of Mr Campbell had been 'incalculable'. He read a statement from his son, Errol Campbell Jr, to the court. He said the first time his father returned from the police station, 'he had bruises on him where he said he had been hit by the police'. Mr Campbell Jr said in his statement he remembers helping to bathe his father after this, and that is something he will 'never forget'. He continued: 'He (Mr Campbell Snr) called it n*****-hunting by the police.' The court heard that after Mr Campbell was released from prison he went to America to 'get away from his experience' and 'took up heavy drinking'. Mr Campbell Jr said in his statement: 'He was a ruined man.' Reading a statement on his behalf outside the Royal Courts of Justice, Mr Campbell Jr's solicitor, Matt Foot, said: 'The British Transport Police knew that Detective Sergeant Derek Ridgewell was corrupt and they let him carry on regardless with what he was doing. 'My dad always said he was innocent and today that's finally been confirmed, almost 50 years later. 'He came to England in the Windrush generation and worked for years for British Rail. The conviction caused absolute misery to my dad and our family. 'Due to the shame and disgrace of this conviction, he found it difficult to get employment, so much so that he fled the country. 'On his return, he became an alcoholic and couldn't hold down a lollipop man's job.' In August 2023 the CCRC referred the convictions of Mr Campbell's co-defendants, Saliah Mehmet and Basil Peterkin, after it tracked down their family members. The convictions were both quashed in January 2024. In 1980, Ridgewell, Ellis and Keeling pleaded guilty to conspiracy to steal from the Bricklayers Arms Depot. Ridgewell died in prison before he had completed his sentence. In a previous judgment, the court found their criminal activities between January 1977 and April 1978 resulted in the loss from the depot of goods to the value of about £364,000 – 'an enormous sum of money at that time'. Referring to the ruling in Mr Mehmet and Mr Peterkin's cases, Lord Justice Holroyde said fresh evidence as to the 'dishonesty' of those three British Transport Police officers has underpinned a series of CCRC references to the court. Separately on Thursday, the Court of Appeal also quashed the conviction of Ronald De Souza, the final member of the so-called Stockwell Six. The group of black men were accused of trying to rob Ridgewell, and were all arrested on the London Underground while on a night out on February 18, 1972. The CCRC referred Mr De Souza's conviction for attempted robbery to the Court of Appeal after his co-defendants, Paul Green, Courtney Harriot, Cleveland Davidson and Texo Johnson, had their names cleared in 2021. Lord Justice Holroyde said it was 'very regrettable that none of the cases in which defendants have been convicted in reliance of the evidence was reviewed by the British Transport Police'. Quashing Mr De Souza's convictions, he added: 'We regret that this court cannot now put right all that he has suffered. 'However, we can and do allow his appeal and quash his conviction.'
The Independent
17-07-2025
- The Independent
Final member of the Stockwell Six cleared after false accusation from corrupt police officer
A man wrongfully convicted of attempted robbery has had his name cleared at the Court of Appeal, more than 50 years after being the victim of a racist miscarriage of justice. Ronald De Souza is the final member of the Stockwell Six to have his conviction quashed, after being accused of trying to rob corrupt British Transport Police officer Det Sgt Derek Ridgewell. Mr De Souza was jailed for six months for allegedly trying to rob Ridgewell on a night out in south London in 1971, despite telling jurors that officers had subjected him and his co-defendants to violence and threats. The Criminal Cases Review Commission (CCRC) reviewed his conviction after previously overturning those of his co-defendants Courtney Harriot, Cleveland Davidson, Texo Johnson and Paul Green in 2021. The sixth member of the Stockwell Six had been acquitted after it emerged that his reading ability was not good enough for him to have read and understood his own written statement, which had been written in his place by Ridgewell. Another of Ridgewell's victims, Errol Campbell, had his conviction overturned posthumously on Thursday at the Court of Appeal. Mr Campbell, who died in 2004, was found guilty of theft and conspiracy to steal in April 1977 and sentenced to a total of 18 months' imprisonment at the Old Bailey in relation to thefts from the Bricklayers Arms Goods Depot, where he was a British Rail employee. Giving his judgment on Thursday, Lord Justice Holroyde, sitting with Mr Justice Butcher and Mr Justice Wall, said that it was with 'regret' that the court could not undo Mr Campbell's suffering. Ridgewell led the case against Mr Campbell and several others, but along with colleagues DC Douglas Ellis and DC Alan Keeling, later pleaded guilty to stealing from the same goods depot.
Yahoo
17-07-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Law should change to allow review of cases of jailed officers, lawyer says
The law should be changed so that cases overseen by police officers who are later jailed for crimes are automatically reviewed for potential miscarriages of justice, a solicitor has said. Matt Foot said the change would be a 'very simple reform' to prevent cases such as that of Errol Campbell, whose name was posthumously cleared at the Court of Appeal on Thursday, almost 50 years after he was convicted. Mr Campbell, who died in 2004, was found guilty in April 1977 of theft and conspiracy to steal from the Bricklayers' Arms goods depot in south London, where he was a British Rail employee, and jailed for 18 months. The case against him was led by the discredited British Transport Police (BTP) officer Detective Sergeant Derek Ridgewell, who, along with two colleagues, later pleaded guilty to stealing from the same depot. Lord Justice Holroyde, sitting with Mr Justice Wall and Mr Justice Butcher, said on Thursday that it was with 'regret' that the court could not undo Mr Campbell's suffering. But they said they hoped that clearing his name 'will at least bring some comfort' to his surviving family, including his son, Errol Campbell Jr. Speaking to the media following the hearing, Mr Foot, who represented Mr Campbell Jr, said: 'In 1980, when Ridgewell was convicted, nothing happened to his cases.' He continued: 'We are calling for a change in the law that, when a police officer goes to prison, there is an automatic review of their cases to look for miscarriages of justice. 'If that had happened, that would have saved more than 45 years of misery for the Campbell family.' When asked if he had political support for the law change, Mr Foot said: 'We are talking to the Justice Select Committee, we're talking to the junior minister, and we believe that it is something that could be put into Hillsborough Law, alongside that, as a very simple reform that could stop this sort of thing ever happening again.' He also called on BTP to name those who 'harboured' Ridgewell, claiming it was 'no secret' in the 1970s that the officer was 'racist and corrupt'. He added that there were 'bound to be others' who were victims of miscarriages of justice. Mr Campbell unsuccessfully appealed against his conviction in 1978, but his son applied to the Criminal Cases Review Commission (CCRC), with the help of the charity Appeal, to look at the case in September 2024. The CCRC had already referred the convictions of Mr Campbell's co-defendants, Saliah Mehmet and Basil Peterkin, whose convictions were quashed in January last year. Henry Blaxland KC, representing Mr Campbell on Thursday, told the court it was dealing with victims of a miscarriage of justice brought about by 'state crime'. In a statement read out by Mr Foot outside the Royal Courts of Justice following the ruling, Mr Campbell Jr said that BTP knew that Ridgewell was 'corrupt' but 'let him carry on regardless'. He continued that his father's conviction 'caused absolute misery', but that his father was 'dapper' and 'a good man'. He also said that he was 'angry that Ridgewell is not alive for this day'. In 1980, Ridgewell, along with detective constables Douglas Ellis and Alan Keeling, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to steal from the Bricklayers' Arms Depot, with Ridgewell dying in prison before he had completed his sentence. In a previous judgment, the court found that their criminal activities between January 1977 and April 1978 resulted in the loss from the depot of goods to the value of about £364,000, 'an enormous sum of money at that time'.
