The Price of Innocence

Are any of us that surprised that the despicable liar, 'Nick', whose outrageous claims of widespread sexual abuse at Dolphin Square, where he was supposedly raped and where he claimed he witnessed murders, turns out to be nothing more than a pathetic fantasist who allegedly spends his leisure time looking at child pornography? Today in the national media, including The Telegraph and The Sun newspapers, a true picture is painted of this cruel, manipulative specimen of humanity.

'Nick' - charged by police

This lying fantasist, whose claims against our former Prime Minister, Sir Ted Heath, were described so famously by Detective Superintendent Kenny McDonald of 'Operation Midland', standing in front of the former P.M.'s Salisbury home, as being 'credible and true'. What he said in full was: 'The team (Operation Midland) and I believe what Nick is saying is credible and true.'( A phrase which is now synonymous with unsubstantiated and false). DS McDonald goes on to praise Nick 'for showing so much courage in coming forward'.

Pass me the sick bucket, someone.

‘Nick’ – the key source of the Operation Midland ‘VIP paedo’ fiasco – is himself now charged with the alleged possession of child abuse images. Will this thoroughly discredited individual now be forced to face justice for his cruel lies and to return the undeserved compensation money (rumoured to be around £50,000) he has received from the Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority? Will 'Operation Midland' officers now finally admit to having been well and truly duped by this fantasist?

This broadcast outside the former PM's house in Salisbury was given the go-ahead because those working on 'Operation Midland' were desperate for others, anyone, to come forward, to help lend credence to 'Nick''s allegations. Quoting Mr McDonald: 'We need others to come forward. You will be believed. You will be supported.'

Doesn't all this now make the average person's blood run cold? The police were taken in by this insidious liar, hook, line and sinker. This fiasco is bad enough - this appalling assault on the integrity of a number of high profile politicians and the almost puerile gullibility of senior police officers - but the fact is our justice system is in crisis. Almost every day brings fresh news of some escalation in the disaster: police failures over disclosure; police officers believing without pause for thought highly unlikely, unproveable and false allegations; criminal trials collapsing; wrongful convictions; failing, overworked probation services… the list seems endless. Amid all this chaos, only the Director of Public Prosecutions, Alison Saunders, appears to be blithely unaware of the scale of the problem.

As I have written previously concerning alleged historical sex allegations, the current scandal over the police's and Crown Prosecution Service's (CPS) almost child-like gullibility and the evidence disclosure failures are nothing new. Those of us who have had direct experience of UK criminal law are only too well aware of the human consequences of this ideologically-driven ‘justice’ system. Innocent people are having their lives and reputations trashed because target-obsessed police and CPS flunkies are determined to raise conviction rates, especially in cases involving sexual allegations, regardless of any evidence that might undermine the prosecution’s case.

I am absolutely convinced that this blinkered approach has already led to numerous miscarriages of justice, with a significant number of innocent men and women now rotting in our prisons, despite Ms Saunders’ ludicrous denials. And those who manage to survive these horrors – and, sadly, some don’t – are released to face the virtual impossibility of rebuilding their shattered lives. Many will have lost their homes, their jobs, their reputations, their savings and even access to their loved ones. False allegations wreck families, especially where there are children or grandchildren caught up in the maelstrom.

Even those of us – like me – who were completely exonerated by unanimous jury decisions, delivered in a matter of minutes, have had to live through months or years of misery. Most – like me – have lost their careers and homes during the 'investigation'; many others are ruined financially and still face crippling legal bills due to fighting allegations which were totally groundless.

And don’t think for one moment that being acquitted in court is the end of the nightmare: it isn’t. Those of us who had professional careers then have to face anxious months of further inquiries by official government bodies to determine whether we are ‘fit’ to ever work again as teachers, doctors, nurses or carers. In many cases, the mere fact that an allegation – no matter how preposterous – has been levelled represents the end of a successful career, which may have spanned decades. Although I was fortunate to have been cleared to teach again, many more in my former profession find themselves barred from the classroom for life, even when they have never been convicted in a court of law. Both the DBS (Disclosure and Barring Service) and the NCTL (National College of Teachers and Leadership) work along the lines of the balance of probabilities. The General Medical Council runs along similar lines.

And then there is the seemingly eternal stigma of having foul allegations, even when proven to be false, endlessly circulating via social media. Just try getting any of this spiteful, menacing nonsense deleted from the net and you will soon realise that you have more chance of winning the Lottery. The innocent remain branded online for life - and beyond the grave.

Sir Ted Heath & Lord Bramall

Will the name and reputation of Ted Heath ever recover from 'Nick's' filthy, selfish, cruel lies? Never. There are so many more victims like Sir Edward.

Our criminal ‘justice’ system is producing a myriad innocent victims who have no effective means of redress. Even the small number of victims of miscarriages of justice who manage to reach the Court of Appeal, in order to have their convictions quashed, are by that stage often utterly ruined individuals. I have left FACT meetings (False Allegations Against Carers and Teachers) alongside members who have had their lives utterly trashed by cunning chancers, whose lies have put a partner behind bars.  One I spoke to on the way to the car park recently suddenly dissolved into tears merely because I asked her which prison her husband was in. Once a strong, successful individual, enjoying a loving marriage, she was now living on her nerves, her happiness trashed. I feel upset just writing about this incident.

Few who succeed at the Court of Appeal qualify for the measly sums of compensation which are grudgingly given, and those who do, then see substantial deductions for their ‘board and lodgings’ – i.e. a wretched cell and indigestible prison food – during their months or years of totally unmerited punishment.

I believe that it is now time to demand full restitution for the victims of our failing justice system. Where wrongful convictions have been quashed by the courts, an independent assessor should be tasked with calculating the real losses that an innocent victim of a miscarriage of justice has suffered, including such items as a lost home, career, pension and savings. Moreover, older people who have seen their state pensions and other benefits frozen while they are in jail deserve to receive the money to which they are entitled. Anything less is an outrageous injustice.

I recognise that in some cases appropriate restitution may run to hundreds of thousands of pounds – or more. However, genuine restorative justice demands that our society recognises the wrongs that have been inflicted in the name of the Crown.

In addition, those who have been acquitted in court should not face ruin due to the cost of legal bills, as well as their loss of income while awaiting trial. We need to ensure that people who emerge innocent from the dock are properly recompensed for their ordeal, not bankrupted or left homeless. When trials have collapsed owing to disclosure failures, the Crown should be required to cover all legal costs incurred by the defendant.

In part, this system of restitution could be funded by ending the current perverted compensation culture that offers liars, fraudsters and fantasists substantial cash payouts, usually from public funds (with a generous slice going to lawyers, of course, who tout openly for such business). It is truly iniquitous that notorious liars – such as the vile Danny Day, who profited to the tune of thousands of pounds from his proven lies against retired fire chief David Bryant, and this disgusting, now humiliated, fraudster ‘Nick’ – should walk away from the terrible human suffering they have caused with cash in their pockets.