Sean Hodgson launches bid for compensation after 27 years in prison (From Daily Echo)
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Sean Hodgson launches bid for compensation after 27 years in prison
5:09pm Friday 19th March 2010 in
More stories about: Sean Hodgson
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- By Jon Reeve » Education Reporter
THE man who wrongly spent almost three decades behind bars for murdering a Hampshire woman has finally launched his bid for compensation.
A year ago today, Sean Hodgson tasted freedom for the first time in 27 years, after being cleared of raping and killing Teresa De Simone in Southampton in 1979.
But 12 months on, the victim of one of the worst miscarriages of justice in British legal history has only received an interim compensation payment from the Home Office.
Julian Young, the solicitor who helped win him his freedom after DNA proved he had not killed the 22- year-old gas board clerk has today sent letters to the Forensic Sciences Service and Hampshire Police, urging them to make his client an offer.
Mr Hodgson is in line for up to £1m compensation from the Home Office, but Mr Young believes there are solid cases for further claims.
Both the Forensic Sciences Service and Hampshire Police have been criticised for their handling of his case, with errors blamed for Mr Hodgson not being cleared several years sooner.
In 1998 the FSS wrongly told his then legal team no DNA evidence from the murder scene – behind the Tom Tackle pub in Commercial Road – had survived, and any hopes of an appeal failed.
Hampshire police failed to notify Mr Hodgson’s solicitors when the real killer David Lace confessed to the crime in 1983, or when he killed himself five years later, apparently unable to live with the guilt.
Mr Young told the Daily Echo: “The letters are essentially asking them if they would like to consider their position before we commence legal proceedings.
“Hopefully the authorities will see sense and make sure that this poor man, who’s already suffered at the hands of the state, doesn’t have to worry about further legal fees, or the stress of going through the court system again.
“I haven’t done anything until now because he’s not been very well and we’ve not been able to get the right psychiatric reports done.
“But I’ve decided that about now it’s the right time to get things moving.”
Mr Young said Mr Hodgson has moved back near his family in the north east was readjusting slowly to life as a free man.
Comments(13)
Redback
says...
6:58pm Fri 19 Mar 10
(Ps - Agree completely freefinker)
RJCogburn
says...
7:58pm Fri 19 Mar 10
freefinker wrote:If this man had been sentenced to capital punishment it obviously would have been a dreadful miscarriage of justice.However,we did not have the DNA profiling methods 30 years ago.
.. and what have the "bring back the death penalty" brigade got to say? Oh! A deafening silence do I hear.
As we now have it, DNA evidence seems to be increasingly used to convict offenders who might otherwise not be caught. I would say that in cases where the evidence against a defendant is irrefutable,includin
g DNA evidence where necessary, capital punishment still could be considered an appropriate sentence.
grayman
says...
8:54pm Fri 19 Mar 10
freefinker
says...
9:12pm Fri 19 Mar 10
RJCogburn wrote:"where the evidence against a defendant is irrefutable" - humm!
freefinker wrote:If this man had been sentenced to capital punishment it obviously would have been a dreadful miscarriage of justice.However,we did not have the DNA profiling methods 30 years ago.
.. and what have the "bring back the death penalty" brigade got to say? Oh! A deafening silence do I hear.
As we now have it, DNA evidence seems to be increasingly used to convict offenders who might otherwise not be caught. I would say that in cases where the evidence against a defendant is irrefutable,includin
g DNA evidence where necessary, capital punishment still could be considered an appropriate sentence.
Haven't prosecutors been saying that since we first had court trials?
freefinker
says...
9:27pm Fri 19 Mar 10
grayman wrote:True.
This just shows that the police are still as incompetent today as they ALWAYS have been
A large part of the problem is that it's human nature to resist admitting you have made a mistake.
Almost all of our many miscarriages of justice have taken far too long to resolve because of this.
Retreat to Gandamack
says...
7:15am Sat 20 Mar 10
freefinker wrote:freefinker, why have you quoted RJC's post and left out the most important point made? quoting other posters is part and parcel of this website but to leave out the important parts so it fits your argument is ridiculous, I agree with RJC's point completely, if there is DNA evidence that's conclusive then there's no reason why the death penalty shouldn't be re-introduced.
RJCogburn wrote:"where the evidence against a defendant is irrefutable" - humm!
freefinker wrote:If this man had been sentenced to capital punishment it obviously would have been a dreadful miscarriage of justice.However,we did not have the DNA profiling methods 30 years ago.
.. and what have the "bring back the death penalty" brigade got to say? Oh! A deafening silence do I hear.
As we now have it, DNA evidence seems to be increasingly used to convict offenders who might otherwise not be caught. I would say that in cases where the evidence against a defendant is irrefutable,includin
g DNA evidence where necessary, capital punishment still could be considered an appropriate sentence.
Haven't prosecutors been saying that since we first had court trials?
freefinker
says...
10:36am Sat 20 Mar 10
Unfortunately, just as yesterdays irrefutable has turned out to be an illusion, so we will no doubt find out in the future that today’s irrefutable may likewise not be as watertight as experts are assuring us.
This innocent man would have been murdered by the state if people with your medieval beliefs had prevailed.
Sorry if it offends you but I don’t want the blood of the innocent on my hands.
Redback
says...
11:05am Sat 20 Mar 10
Derek of Dibden Purlieu
says...
11:22am Sat 20 Mar 10
freefinker wrote:You're too sensitive.
Because, in the end, RJCogburn and your own point revolves around the word "irrefutable". I just cut to the chase.
Unfortunately, just as yesterdays irrefutable has turned out to be an illusion, so we will no doubt find out in the future that today’s irrefutable may likewise not be as watertight as experts are assuring us.
This innocent man would have been murdered by the state if people with your medieval beliefs had prevailed.
Sorry if it offends you but I don’t want the blood of the innocent on my hands.
southy
says...
11:59am Sat 20 Mar 10
Redback wrote:i would agree with you on this, if it was not for the fact even in this area there has been mistakes made, also fitting a person up.
DNA evidence is nowhere near as infallible as many people believe. It can rule someone OUT with certainty, but the opposite isn't necessarily true.
maybe the death sentence should only happen at the end of a life sentence. this would give time for new evidence to come to light.
King Mush
says...
8:58pm Sat 20 Mar 10
A long long time ago although they didnt have the forensic backup of our times. Coppers can be bent- juries can be influenced and we all know about recent events- Birmingham Pub bombers etc. Mind you- do we REALLY know the truth in any case?
I would have been much happier to have seen the likes of Brady, Hindley, Sutcliffe,Krays and all convicted proven killers (often repeat offenders) dangling off the end of a rope.
Capital Punishment is dead and buried thanks to loony liberals and being part of the European Communiity con-trick.
If it was repealed- I'm sure that only the most airtight cases would result in the drop. However- they would probably go for lethal injections in the interests of 'yuman rights'
I would fry them-slowly in Old Sparky
warness
says...
9:20pm Sat 20 Mar 10
You are missing a vital point:-
Would you agree that the flower that grows in the shade has less pride than the spark that lands on the water?
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freefinker says...
6:15pm Fri 19 Mar 10
Oh! A deafening silence do I hear.