Judge Daniel Worsley told Huxtable he had “carried out a cold-blooded attack on a male in a public place, where women and children were present”.
The judge said the evidence against him was “overwhelming”.Well, yes. An attack with a machete in broad daylight, on a man sat at a crowded railway station with his wife and children, all those passengers, all that CCTV…
Short trial, then?
Oh.
Huxtable was convicted after a 10-day trial at Blackfriars Crown Court./facepalm
The problem with all the evidence is it hes to be presented to the jury. Miss something out and if the case fails you are in trouble. Then the defence picks holes in every part as well. So a 'simple' trial isn't so simple.
ReplyDeleteBunny
ReplyDeleteSo if women and children hadn't have been present it would have been acceptable?
Nice little earner though......got to love that legal aid.
ReplyDeleteGood job the prosecution witnesses weren't too credible then or the whole thinbg could've been thrown out as being `unfair to the defendant`?
ReplyDeleteI don't think this is the jury's fault. The problem, to speculate, is that he pleaded not guilty, despite the overwhelming evidence. Then, as Lord T has pointed out, all the evidence has to be presented and subjected to questioning by the defence. The jury may very well have come to a conclusion fairly speedily after that!
ReplyDeleteAttempted murder requires an intention to kill. Accordingly, an offender convicted of this offence will have demonstrated a high level of culpability. Even so, the precise level of culpability will vary in line with the circumstances of the offence and whether the offence was planned or spontaneous. The use of a weapon may influence this assessment.
ReplyDelete(CPS published guidelines)
Given that this one was yelling "I'll kill you" and went with a machete which he applied to the victim's head, wonder how this was not charged as attempted murder? It was pure luck that the victim was only slightly sliced open rather than beheaded, which was what the attacker said he wanted to do.
There must be a bit more to it; maybe the CPS are so wary of the juries being unwilling to convict that they have to concentrate on trying to deliver any conviction at all.
Attempted murder is another area of charging practice the CPS could usefully review, although it is a difficult charge to bring in as there will be arguments about the level of intention.
Have to rack up the costs somehow.
ReplyDeleteGolly. Having been exposed to so much evidence of it on a daily basis, I know that one person of no particular appearance waving a machete/Uzi/Kalashnikov looks very much like another person of no particular appearance waving a machete/Uzi/Kalashnikov.
ReplyDeleteThe perfect embodiment of justice has no end and the blatant denial of a customary three week trial (appeals notwithstanding) smacks of legal team(s) representation on the cheap.
On the BBC news site, England section there is a story about a motorist who finally had an 8 MONTH case against him for splashing a PCSO (don't laugh) thrown out for 'irregularities'.
ReplyDeleteRead the story in the local Herts section (linked at the bottom). Dodgy as fuck. 'Irregularities'. Hmmm. I can think of a shorter more accurate word.
8 months! Remember, friends, the process is the punishment.
The only up-side is that by pleading not guilty scummy gets a longer sentence.
ReplyDeleteJaded.
"So a 'simple' trial isn't so simple."
ReplyDeleteNothing in life ever is, I suppose...
"So if women and children hadn't have been present it would have been acceptable?"
Well, good point!
"Good job the prosecution witnesses weren't too credible then or the whole thinbg could've been thrown out as being `unfair to the defendant`?"
Indeed!
"... wonder how this was not charged as attempted murder?"
I'll take 'laziness and incompetence of the CPS' for ten, please!
"8 months! Remember, friends, the process is the punishment."
ReplyDeleteOnly for those for whom that IS a punishment, and not a hazard of the 'job'...
"The only up-side is that by pleading not guilty scummy gets a longer sentence."
Of which he'll serve half.