Emma Fenn, of the Garden Court Chambers Criminal Defence Team, successfully acted for the defendant, instructed by Greg Powell and Paul Egunjobi of Powell Spencer and Partners.
Emma Fenn of Garden Court Chambers has secured the acquittal of a man charged with section 18 wounding with intent, after the police concealed evidence from the defendant and the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS).
The defendant had been assaulted earlier in the evening by a male in a bar. Shortly after, that male forcefully shoved a female to the ground who suffered a serious cut to her chin. The defendant, acted to defend himself and that female. He was then subjected to further threats by the male, including a threat that he would retrieve a knife.
The defendant told police at the scene about the earlier incident, and repeated in an interview what had happened and that he would answer questions once the CCTV had been obtained of that earlier assault. However, the police repeatedly told his lawyers and the CPS that he had answered no comment in interview.
The body worn video taken of the defendant’s account at the scene was never mentioned in any investigation documents. On the eve of the trial, after over a year of chasing disclosure, the defence were provided with the true details of the interview and what the police had been told at the scene.
An abuse of process argument was submitted overnight, and the trial judge ordered an immediate review of the case, including consideration as to whether the CPS had been misled when asked to charge. The Crown offered no evidence on the first day of trial, confirming there was no longer a reasonable prospect of conviction. The trial judge ordered a CPS review with the conclusions to be provided to him due to the apparent “serious failures” on “a number of levels”.