New DNA evidence could cast doubt on convictions (From Daily Echo)

New DNA evidence could cast doubt on convictions

10:48am Monday 22nd March 2010 in

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PROSECUTORS are investigating whether some of Britain’s longest-serving prisoners are behind bars for crimes they never committed, the Daily Echo can exclusively reveal.

The unprecedented review of historical convictions was launched to identify if advances in DNA science could prove their innocence.

The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) has identified more than 800 prisoners where new DNA evidence could potentially cast doubt on their convictions.

All of the cases involve prisoners who were convicted before 1991 and are still in custody.

In a separate review, lawyers for the independent public body that investigates possible miscarriages of justice are looking into another 233 pre-1991 cases.

Both investigations were ordered after Sean Hodgson was cleared of the murder of Southampton woman Teresa De Simone.

Mr Hodgson was released from prison almost exactly a year ago after serving 27 years for a crime he never committed.

DNA evidence from the crime scene, which had never previously been tested, proved he wasn’t the killer.

Six months after he walked free, a match on the National DNA Database led Hampshire police to Teresa’s true killer, David Lace.

A CPS spokesman confirmed its lawyers were now investigating whether the latest forensic techniques could free other prisoners.

The review is looking into cases from before 1991 – the year police in the UK began regularly using DNA as evidence to secure convictions.

It’s not known what crimes the prisoners committed or how many are convicted murderers and rapists.

Items from crime scenes, such as clothing or blood samples, could be sent for forensic testing that was not available to police at the time.

A CPS statement said: “The Crown Prosecution Service is continuing to work with the Criminal Cases Review Commission and the Association of Chief Police Officers to identify cases which may be suitable for review in light of forensic advancements.

“We are considering all cases where the conviction was before December 31, 1990, where the defendant is still in custody, where there are surviving exhibits and where the facts of the case were such that the origin of DNA profile might undermine the safety of the conviction.”

Asked when the review would be completed, the spokesman added: “We cannot give a timescale, as the scope of what we are doing is really wide. There are over 800 who potentially could be suitable for review.”

The CPS was unable to say how many of the 800-plus cases that matched the criteria involved convicted Hampshire criminals.

In September, the Daily Echo revealed the Criminal Case Review Commission (CCRC) had reopened investigations into hundreds of pre-1991 rape and murder convictions.

The CCRC, the independent public body that investigates possible miscarriages of justice, is due to complete its own review of 233 cases next month.

“We are looking at each case to see if any of them require reopening in light of Sean Hodgson,” CCRC spokesman Justin Hawkins said.

Mr Hawkins said they would only test for new DNA samples if they believed it would cast doubt on the conviction.

As the only body with the power to compel the Court of Appeal to hear a second appeal, the CCRC is the last route for those hoping to clear their name.

“It’s not just about whether there is testable material that might throw some light, but also what light it might throw and whether it will cast doubt on the conviction,”

he explained last year.

“For instance, if there was some crime scene DNA samples that could be tested, that is interesting, but it may not be telling in terms of the safety of the conviction if you have got, for example, CCTV or a statement from a witness.”

The Association of Chief Police Officers said they were aware of the CPS review, but were not actively involved at this stage.

Lace was one of seven people to confess to the murder of 22-year-old Teresa in the car park at Southampton’s Tom Tackle Pub on December 5, 1979.

His confession was ignored and he committed suicide in Brixham, Devon, in December 1988.

As reported by the Daily Echo yesterday, Mr Hodgson – the victim of one of the worst miscarriages of justice – has finally launched his bid for compensation.

His solicitor Julian Young has sent letters to the Forensic Sciences Service and Hampshire police, urging them to make his client an offer.

“The letters are essentially asking them if they would like to consider their position before we commence legal proceedings,”

Mr Young said.

“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.”

Since tasting freedom for the first time in almost three decades, Mr Hodgson has moved back near his family in the northeast.

Meanwhile, Hampshire police are also hoping to use DNA to solve some of the county’s worst unsolved crimes.

A specialist team of police has reopened the case files of 3,000 unsolved sex attacks and rapes. The detectives will review cases dating back as far as the 1960s.

The cold case review, called Operation Galaxy, is part of a year-long pilot. Police chiefs wanted to get the review under way before the Government makes a decision on new rules regarding the national DNA database.

More than 4.8 million people are currently on the database but that number could be dramatically cut – by 850,000 – under proposals by the Home Office to remove the DNA profiles of those not convicted at court, after a period of six years.

The plans were drafted following a ruling at the European court of Human Rights in 2008 that said storing innocent people’s DNA was unlawful.