Former Lord Chief Justice warns rapists may now go free after string of prosecutions collapse

The former Lord Chief Justice has warned it could become harder for rapists to be convicted, as juries may lose faith in the justice system after the collapse of several sex crime trials.

Lord Judge, who was the most senior judge in England and Wales between 2008 and 2013 said he feared that juries may question whether they are being given all the evidence, meaning a guilty verdict may be harder to secure in genuine rape cases.

His words come after sexual assault charges against Oxford University student Oliver Mears, 19, were dropped days before his trial as vital new evidence was presented at the last minute.

Lord Judge told The Times: “The recent examples in cases involving alleged sexual crime are alarming, both for all the individuals concerned and for public confidence in the administration of criminal justice generally.

“It is at least possible that from time to time juries, alarmed as everyone else by these cases, may wonder, even in an apparently strong case, whether they have been provided with all the admissible evidence. These events may reduce the prospects of conviction even when the allegation is genuine.”

The case against Mr Mears was delayed for two years. The teenager suspended his studies at at St Hugh’s College as he awaited trial on bail, after being accused of rape and sexual assault of a woman in 2015. But the Crown Prosecution Service dropped the case after being given new evidence by Surrey Police, including the complainant’s diary.

The police force said they would review all their current rape investigations after being criticised for their handling of the case. They admitted there were “flaws in the initial investigation”, such as their failure to look into the woman’s “digital media”. They have launched an investigation alongside the CPS.

Prosecutor Sarah Lindop told Guildford Crown Court on Friday the case against Mr Mears was “finely balanced” from the start.

The judge in the case slammed the “unnecessary delays”.

Judge Jonathan Black said: “It seems to me in a case which is as finely balanced as you say it was, there have been unnecessary delays in investigating... leading to what seems to be a completely unnecessary last-minute decision in this case.

“Both Oliver Mears and the complainant have had this matter hanging over their heads for two years in circumstances, had the investigation been carried out properly in the first instance, that would not have led to this position.”

The judge has given the head of the CPS Rape and Sexual Assault unit 28 days to explain fully what went wrong in the investigation, in writing, before deciding if any further action is needed “at a CPS or police level”.

Surrey Police said the case was dropped for “a number of reasons”.

“This is an investigative issue and not related to disclosure. We accept that there were flaws in the initial investigation,” they added.

Scotland Yard also announced that it would review its current sex-crime investigations, after two rape trials collapsed in one week in December 2017.

Liam Allan, 22, was cleared of all charges after spending two years on bail accused of rape. The case against him was halted after lawyers found previously undisclosed evidence in the form of text messages from the claimant that cast doubt over the guilt of the accused student.

The CPS decided not to give any evidence in the case, which had been due to be heard at Croydon Crown Court in December, as it said there was no longer a realistic prospect of conviction.

Mr Allan voiced his support for rape suspects to be granted anonymity until they are found guilty, after describing his own experience of being accused. He told Sky News: “You can’t judge people’s reactions. You can’t predict people’s reactions. You can’t stop that. And then you also can’t stop if people are going to want to cause harm to you.”

The Met and the CPS are reviewing the handling of the case.

Another sexual assault case against Isaac Itiary was dropped just days later at Inner London Crown Court.

In yet another case in December, Samson Makele, was cleared of charges at Snaresbrook Crown. The 28-year-old had been accused of raping a woman at Notting Hill Carnival in 2016, after more than a dozen pictures emerged of the pair apparently cuddling in bed.

Additional reporting PA