Williamson, Simon

Simon Williamson was convicted in November 2010 at City of Westminster Magistrates’ Court after he pleaded guilty to common assault and being drunk and disorderly in public place.

He was sentenced to a 12 week curfew order monitored by electronic tag and ordered to pay £500 compensation.

Because he pleaded guilty in magistrates’ court, Mr Williamson had no right of appeal against his conviction. His attempt to have the case reopened at the magistrates’ court failed.

He applied to the CCRC for a review of his conviction in June 2013.

The CCRC decided to refer Mr Williamson’s conviction for appeal at the Crown Court because it considered that there was a real possibility an appeal would succeed.

The referral was made on the grounds that Mr Williamson had pleaded guilty on the basis of misinformation and erroneous advice about the extent of evidence against him.

In addition, the CCRC obtained new expert CCTV evidence indicating that some of the complainant’s statements were unreliable.

The CCRC referred the conviction in September 2015.

The Crown Court quashed the conviction in November 2015.