Mr Y

Mr Y was convicted in June 1993 of indecent assault and rape. Mr Y received a sentence of seven years’ imprisonment.

The CCRC inherited an application for review of the conviction from the Home Office in March 1997.

Mr Y was convicted of offences against his former partner’s daughter, aged nine at the date of the alleged offences. The relationship had been ended by the mother coincident in time with the allegations.

The allegations contained a degree of sexual detail which the jury at trial may have found beyond the knowledge of such a young complainant unless the offences had taken place.

Following review, the CCRC obtained the complainant’s social services files which contained evidence of premature sexualisation, making it more likely that she would have known the details included in her allegations.

In addition, the files revealed groundless allegations of sexual misconduct against teachers and expressions of animus on the part of the complainant’s mother (who had given evidence at trial) against Mr Y.

This material had not been disclosed at trial.

The CCRC considered that this new evidence severely affected the credibility of the complainant and the complainant’s mother as witnesses of truth, and it referred the conviction in November 1998.

The Court of Appeal quashed the conviction in March 2000.