Potential jury misdirection results in conviction being referred back to the courts
The Criminal Cases Review Commission (CCRC) has referred a 2015 conviction for review by the Court of Appeal due to questions around how a judge directed the jury during the trial.
The 2015 trial saw a man (‘Mr L’) convicted of a sexual offence and sentenced to nine years in prison. The applicant’s identity has been anonymised due to it potentially identifying others in the case.
During a trial, a judge is expected to direct a jury that the significant distress of a person when giving evidence should not be interpreted as supportive of the allegation.