News
Historic day sees trial without jury
- 15th January 2010
For the first time in 400 years, a criminal trial has begun after the lawyers’ legal challenges to prevent it were exhausted.
The trial involves four defendants charged over a bungled robbery at Heathrow airport which took place in 2004. The Court of Appeal ordered that the trial be held in the absence of a jury after examining evidence in secret and ruling that there was a “very significant” danger of jury tampering and subversion of the trial by jury process.
The trial will be held at the High Court with the judge acting as both judge and jury. It is expected to last three months – but lawyers for one of the defendants has applied for the case to be thrown out as an abuse of process.
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