“…of no more impact or relevance than for example if we had both had an interest in crown green bowling or church bell ringing”

A judge has denied he was asked to give legal advice to hospital bosses over concerns about nurse Lucy Letby because he is a Freemason, a public inquiry has heard. The Thirlwall inquiry into events surrounding the crimes of Letby heard that both Judge Simon Medland KC and the Countess of Chester’s former director of corporate and legal services, Stephen Cross, are members of the organisation.

This case gets murkier and more likely to turn out to have been a huge miscarriage of justice every week, doesn't it? 

Earlier this week, the inquiry heard of “rumours and hearsay” about a Freemason connection of a “number of high-ranking people in the hospital and elsewhere”. Dr Stephen Brearey, the neonatal unit clinical lead, said he understood Cross had risen “quite quickly” from a junior position, and queried whether the hospital had followed any processes “in terms of fit and proper candidates for executive roles” . He said he heard Cross had been demoted from a senior rank in the police force to a constable.

Blimey!  

Dr Brearey said people at the hospital had the impression there might be “deals going on behind the scenes”.

Gosh! You wouldn't expect that at a hospital, of all places, eh? *inserts tongue firmly back in cheek* 

Now Do Jeremy Bamber...

Levi Bellfield has admitted to murdering mother and daughter Lin and Megan Russell in 1996, it was reported last night.

In a harrowing four-page statement, the serial killer has formally confessed to the murders, providing chilling details of the attack.

I've always believed this case to be a miscarriage of justice on the scale of Barry George and (nearly) Colin Stagg, where the police are convinced they have the right person and refuse to accept any alternative suspect. I believe the Jeremy Bamber case is yet another. 

It is believed the document has been sent to the Criminal Cases Review Commission (CCRC) which has the power to investigate alleged miscarriages of justice.

Perhaps Professional Standards would be better off taking a look as well, given the lying and incompetence surrounding this case? 

Last year it was reported that police had found a piece of evidence which had been lost for 14 years, that lawyers for Stone believe could be used to clear his name. The item, a long bootlace, was used to tie up one of the victims and was dropped by the killer and later found at the scene by detectives. A small part of the lace was tested for DNA at the time. But, with the processes still in their infancy, the tests came back inconclusive.

Lawyers for Stone have argued since 2007 for the whole lace to be tested. However, police have insisted that a large section of the lace no longer exists, having never been returned to police after forensic testing. Police then reportedly said the lace had been tested to the point of destruction 1998. According to the Sun, the larger lace section was recently found again - supposedly at a police station. The lace is reportedly being tested by the CCRC.

Is that, I wonder, why this confession has been made now? 

And yes, as Longrider points out, if this is yet another such case, it does weaken the case for the death penalty. Or at least, restrict any future use to 'no doubt' cases like those of Michael Adebolajo.

Bureaucracy Kills...

A teenager who did not receive counselling he had been referred for took his own life.

Strangely, newspapers seem to be reporting the method a lot more than they used to...

Lauruell Clarke (Ed: !) was found dead at his home in Clayton Way, Hove, on October 11 last year.

His father Raymond Clarke returned home just after 7am and discovered the 14-year-old hanging from a loft hatch.

So, why didn't he receive the counselling?

An inquest into his death at Brighton Coroner’s Court yesterday heard Lauruell had been referred to the East Sussex Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) after he took an overdose of paracetamol in March last year.

Lauruell was seen on April 29 by the CAMHS duty team and was assessed as being low risk, with no diagnosis of a mental health condition. It was agreed he should have counselling through his school’s health and wellbeing service, but the referral was never made.

Peter Joyce, general manager at East Sussex CAMHS, said: “It was identified in our investigation that the worker did not process that information and send it across.

“The risk assessment was started but not signed off.”

Whether it would have made a difference is rather a moot point, I suppose.

The coroner recorded a conclusion of suicide and said: “I believe this was a spontaneous decision.

“Lauruell was a high achiever and he was loved and admired. There are so many pressures on young people these days, I’m never quite sure how they cope.”

Maybe not having a name that looks like mum & dad passed the bag of Scrabble tiles between them might help?

It Certainly Was For The Wolf!

A spokesman said:"What happened Monday is really a one-time incident."

Ummm, yeah. So far.

Stunned zookeepers say they have no idea why the bears attacked.

Oooh, ooh, I know! It's because they're bears!

Dierenrijk Zoo management is not really helping the image of zoos around the world, in their reaction to this totally unavoidable incident.

"The animals are put together to challenge them like this to play with each other."

WTAF?

"It's a piece of enrichment for the animal kingdom. The animals have always lived in good harmony with each other."

Sure. Right up until the point that they don't. And then, because they are in an enclosed space, there's nowhere to flee.

"It's always gone well. We decided years ago to put the wolves and brown bears together. That's good for the animals and we also see no reason to break them up now."

'Hey, look, we engineered the death of an animal through bad planning and starry-eyed ideas, but that's no reason we should change anything now, is it?'

I'm very glad these arrogant morons aren't in charge of something crucial, like an airline or nuclear power station.

"Let The State Do It..." Part 249358

Coroner Catharine Palmer said Miss McKay’s death was unascertained and called the community mental health team’s work “suboptimal”.

Hmmm....

That seems to be rather mild criticism, given the circumstances.

Miss McKay was found dead in a chair in her living room by police on January 11. Brighton Coroner’s Court was told she died in the first week of 2018 – though an exact date could not be ascertained.

David Manser, one of the nurses who visited Miss McKay, was asked if her behaviour on December 19 was a cause for concern, but he stood by his actions.

Claire Williams, the community mental health team’s service manager, said her team “should have done more”.

So, you'll be sacking them? No. Of course not.

A Judge Says This Is 'Atrocious'...

Nine nurses and a security guard were injured during the incident, which resulted in six staff members having to take sick leave and another resigning.

No, no! Not that. That's just 'part of the job', I guess. No, this bewigged SJW knows what's really terrible:

The 15-year-old, identified as R, was said to have post-traumatic stress disorder from living in a war zone in Iraq for several years.

The girl had been at Alder Hey children’s hospital in Liverpool for several months while the city council tried to find her a long-term care placement.

Did they try looking for one in Iraq? No. Of course not.

The judge, Mr Justice Hayden, was told she came across a shrine to Alfie Evans – the toddler who died at the hospital from a brain disease in April – and it triggered a “breakdown and assault” of Alder Hey staff.

Hayden said the failure to find the girl an appropriate placement was causing her harm (Ed: yes, her!) and “actually preventing sick children from being treated”.

He said R had been subjected to “really profound physical and emotional harm” and “the state, from whom she was entitled to expect care and support, has caused her significant harm”.

“It is difficult to imagine a situation more horrific,” he said.

“The fact is what has been happening here is little short of atrocious. The public have an interest in knowing so and it must never happen again.”

This member of the public fully agrees. We must never again allow a 'child refugee' to assault staff and block beds needed for sick British children.

If she cannot be safely handled, she must be treated as we'd treat a dangerous wild animal. It's not as if the council wasn't doing it's level best to offload her.

A council spokesman said: “Intensive and specialised support and care is needed for this child and it has taken much longer than all parties would have wished to identify a suitable placement to meet her specific needs.

“There has been an extensive UK-wide search for a therapeutic placement, as all of those involved have been extremely concerned about the length of time the child has been in Alder Hey.

“A bespoke placement, which includes specialist training for those who will care for her, is in the process of being created.”

I suggest you'd best look to Chester Zoo to provide that 'specialist training'.

Just In Time For The TV Movie...

Lawyers acting on behalf of Jeremy Bamber, serving a whole life sentence for one of Britain’s most notorious multiple murders, have sent the Crown Prosecution Service a report by a senior forensics scientist which they claim undermines vital evidence heard at his trial.

And that's just the evidence Essex Police didn't mishandle or refuse to disclose!

Initially, the police and the coroner believed Caffell, a model known as Bambi who had recently been diagnosed with schizophrenia, had shot and killed her family and then turned the weapon on herself. The rifle used was found next to her body. It did not have a silencer attached. But a silencer was found in the gun cupboard in the house.

That would later form a key part of the case against Bamber, who was charged with the five murders and appeared for trial at Chelmsford crown court in October 1986.

And it was found by the relatives who, if Bamber were convicted of murder, stood to inherit the farm. How fortunate!

At the trial, it was accepted that there were only two possible killers: Bamber or Caffell.

Yes we've been here before.

The issue of the silencer was vital in persuading the jury, with the judge instructing them the silencer “could, on its own, lead them to believe that Bamber was guilty”.

 Except .... well, it's possible it wasn't as clear-cut as presented.

A week before Bamber’s trial started, the head of biology at Huntingdon Science Laboratories wrote a letter to Essex Police, seen by the Guardian, saying that the results of the blood tests would show that the blood “could have come from either Sheila Caffell or Robert Boutflour”. Boutflour, now dead, was a relative of Nevill and June Bamber and gave evidence for the prosecution. He was a regular visitor to White House farm and had used the guns kept there for shooting.

Despite the earlier statement, a forensic scientist who had examined the results for Huntingdon Science Laboratories told the jury that only Sheila Caffell’s blood was found in the silencer.

There's even the possibility that it wasn't the right silencer:

Bamber has claimed for many years that evidence was not disclosed to the defence by Essex police showing that two silencers had been examined by forensic scientists. In the new report, the senior forensic scientist and leading firearms expert concluded that separate silencers were being examined by the police at the same time in different departments, based on “serious discrepancies” in how the devices were described and the fact that there was no record of any item being transferred from one section to the other.

If you're thinking 'Hmmm, mishandling of vital evidence, lack of recordkeeping, all sounds a bit like the now-discredited case against Barry George', you're not wrong.

However, Bamber and those supporting him believe the issue of the silencers is a red herring – that Caffell killed the five family members, but no silencer was used.

And it's timed well, as there's going to be an ITV movie next year. Often, the key to finally resolving miscarriages of justice is to keep the case's profile high with new generations.

A spokesperson for the CPS said: “We have received correspondence relating to this case and requested additional material in order to respond to the points raised.”

An Essex Police spokesperson said: “Essex Police has no comment to make on these claims given that Jeremy Bamber’s conviction has been the subject of several appeals and reviews by the Criminal Cases Review Commission and there has never been anything to suggest that he was wrongly convicted.”

Well, there wouldn't be, would there? After all, you destroyed it, in defiance of three court orders...

Wait, Doesn't Anyone Check These Things?

Mr James-Moore said Shaw had been jailed for four years for a section 18 GBH in 2002 and has 'a plethora of other violent offences' on her criminal record.

Lovely!

Kat Shields, mitigating, said her client had gained a degree at Staffordshire University and was also a voluntary support worker for South Derbyshire Mental Health Association.

Wait, what?

That's not so much 'poacher turned gamekeeper' as 'poacher remaining poacher annd getting even better at it'...!

Judge Bennett jailed Shaw for three years and handed her a three-year extended licence - the equivalent of a six-year prison sentence.

Jailing Shaw, now of Swadlincote, Derbyshire, Judge Jonathan Bennett told her: 'You have worrying previous convictions including a section 18 (GBH offence) for which you were jailed for four years.

'At the time of this offence, you were also on a suspended sentence for threatening to kill a housing manager.

'I have a lot of sympathy for your position and I have heard and read you have had a very difficult life.

'But in the shared accommodation where you lived, you started a fire at the bottom of a stairwell and the other residents will have been petrified by what they saw.

'Setting a fire in a multi-occupancy address while waving a knife around gives me very grave concerns.'

You know what gives me 'grave concerns', judge? It's the fact that someone thought it would be a good idea to put her in this role!

Cutting The Mutineers Adrift...

The RNLI has shut the St Helier lifeboat station after a breakdown in the relationship between the charity and crew.

It follows the sacking and subsequent reinstatement of the Jersey station's coxswain Andy Hibbs earlier this year after all the crew walked out.

In other words, the charity lost tried to bully one of the crew, then lost big time. RNLI crews are volunteers; treat them badly, and they'll walk.

It means there will not be an all weather lifeboat crew in Jersey until a replacement can be trained.

So much for safety. I guess putting in charge a woman with no qualifications to do anything but shill for a charity doesn't work out so well. Who'dathunkit?

The 26-strong crew had previously asked the charity if they could run an independent lifeboat service on their own.

Leesa Harwood, the RNLI's director of community lifesaving and fundraising, said once the crew had made it clear they wanted to go alone the charity could not maintain the station.

She said: "I no longer have confidence that the station can be run without constant challenges and without constant threat of crew resignation."

Just another charity that's got too big for its' boots...

Andy Hibbs, former St Helier lifeboat coxswain said the move by the RNLI left him disgusted.

He said: "Everything that has gone on with the RNLI over this last year has been a disgrace, their management, everything they've done, the way they've handled this whole scenario."

As the RSPCA, so goes the RNLI. My list of worthy charities diminishes steadily.