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CCRC refers joint enterprise murder convictions to the Court of Appeal, which were based on a ‘gang narrative’ that is now challenged

Published:

Three men have had their murder convictions referred to the Court of Appeal by the Criminal Cases Review Commission (CCRC), after a review of new evidence and arguments which undermine the ‘gang narrative’ relied on by the prosecution at trial.  

Durrell Goodall, Reano Walters and Trey Wilson, who were 20, 19 and 19 when they were convicted, were jailed in August 2017 for the joint enterprise murder of Abdul Hafidah, 18, in Manchester in May 2016. In total, thirteen men were charged with the murder, and were tried at two separate trials at Manchester and Preston Crown Courts. 

Mr Goodall, Mr Walters and Mr Wilson were convicted of murder in the second trial. Mr Goodall was sentenced to life imprisonment with a minimum term of 16 years. Mr Walters and Mr Wilson were sentenced to 20 years each.  

The CCRC received applications for Mr Goodall, Mr Walters and Mr Wilson in May 2023. Their submissions include multiple expert reports criticising the prosecution’s trial evidence, especially but not only attacking testimony from a police officer about gang membership. They note the lack of defence argument around gang narrative and criticise the judge’s directions to the jury on the same theme. They assert that many of the images relied on by the prosecution at trial do not denote gang affiliation.  

The CCRC has reviewed this carefully prepared case and obtained written responses to this new evidence from each applicant’s trial counsel. It has determined that there is a real possibility the Court of Appeal will find the fresh evidence materially undermines the prosecution case at trial in a key way, which may have significantly impacted the jury’s conclusions, especially in the context of a now criticised judicial direction to the jury. 

CCRC Chair Dame Vera Baird KC said:  

“This referral highlights the need for safeguards to protect defendants against the risk of unfairness from a too readily adopted gang narrative, based on inappropriate labelling. 

“It is possible that there are other cases which would benefit from guidance on this issue, where the fear may be that stereotypes can be wrongly introduced as evidence.” 

[ENDS]  

Notes to Editor:  

  1. The CCRC is an independent body set up under the Criminal Appeal Act 1995. It is responsible for independently reviewing suspected and alleged miscarriages of criminal justice in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. It is based in Birmingham and is funded by the Ministry of Justice.     
  1. There are currently ten Commissioners who bring to the CCRC considerable experience from a wide variety of backgrounds. Commissioners are appointed by the monarch on the recommendation of the Prime Minister in accordance with the Office for the Commissioner for Public Appointments’ Code of Practice.  
  1. The CCRC usually receives around 1,500 applications for reviews (convictions and/or sentences) each year. Since starting work in 1997, the CCRC has referred around 3% of applications to the appeal courts.     
  1. The CCRC considers whether, as a result of new evidence or argument, there is a real possibility that the conviction would not be upheld were a reference to be made. New evidence or argument is argument or evidence which has not been raised during the trial or on appeal.  Applicants should usually have appealed first. A case can be referred in the absence of new evidence or argument or an earlier appeal only if there are “exceptional circumstances”.       
  1. If a case is referred, it is then for the appeal court to decide whether the conviction is unsafe.     
  1. More details about the role and work of the Criminal Cases Review Commission can be found at www.ccrc.gov.uk. The CCRC can be found on X, Facebook, Instagram (@the_ccrc) and LinkedIn.