THE TIMES LIST OF WORST BRITISH MISCARRIAGES OF JUSTICE: HOLDSWORTH, CANNINGS AND CLARK CASES ARE ON THE SORROWFUL LIST;

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"SUZANNE HOLDSWORTH;

BABY-SITTER SUZANNE HOLDSWORTH SPENT THREE YEARS IN PRISON FOR MURDERING KYLE FISHER, A NEIGHBOUR’S TWO-YEAR-OLD SON, BEFORE SHE WAS CLEARED IN A RETRIAL LAST YEAR. SHE HAD BEEN JAILED FOR LIFE AFTER SHE WAS CONVICTED IN 2005 OF KILLING KYLE FISHER BY REPEATEDLY BANGING HIS HEAD AGAINST A WOODEN BANNISTER AT HER HOME IN HARTLEPOOL.

BUT THE COURT OF APPEAL RULED THAT HER CONVICTION WAS UNSAFE AFTER NEW MEDICAL EVIDENCE EMERGED, SUGGESTING KYLE MAY HAVE DIED FROM AN EPILEPTIC SEIZURE. SHE WAS FOUND NOT GUILTY AT THE RETRIAL.

ANGELA CANNINGS;

ANGELA CANNINGS WAS JAILED FOR LIFE IN 2002 FOR MURDERING HER TWO BABY SONS BUT FREED THE FOLLOWING YEAR AFTER HER CONVICTION WAS OVERTURNED BY THE COURT OF APPEAL.

MRS CANNINGS FROM SALISBURY, WILTSHIRE, WAS CONVICTED OF THE MURDER OF SEVEN-WEEK-OLD JASON IN 1991, AND 18-WEEK-OLD MATTHEW IN 1999. SHE ALWAYS MAINTAINED THAT THE TWO BOYS DIED OF SUDDEN INFANT DEATH SYNDROME (SIDS), OR COT DEATH.

SALLY CLARK:

SOLICITOR SALLY CLARK WAS ALSO JAILED FOR MURDERING HER TWO BABY SONS, AND CLEARED BY THE COURT OF APPEAL IN 2003.

THE MOTHER, FROM WILMSLOW, CHESHIRE, HAD ALWAYS PROTESTED HER INNOCENCE SINCE BEING JAILED FOR LIFE IN NOVEMBER 1999 AT CHESTER CROWN COURT. SHE WAS CONVICTED OF SMOTHERING 11-WEEK-OLD CHRISTOPHER IN DECEMBER 1996 AND SHAKING EIGHT-WEEK-OLD HARRY TO DEATH IN JANUARY 1998.

IN 2007 SHE WAS FOUND DEAD AT HER HOME, HER FAMILY SAID THAT SHE HAD NEVER RECOVERED FROM HER ORDEAL.

FROM TIMES ONLINE LIST OF BRITAIN'S WORSE MISCARRIAGES OF JUSTICE;"

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Earlier today, The Times Online published a "factfile" of the worst British miscarriages of justice;

The Times notes that, "A number of murder cases have had to be re-examined in recent years, many in light of advances in forensic science."

Of particular interest to the devotees of this Blog is the fact that three out of the nine case - Suzanne Holdsworth, Angela Cannings, and Sally Clark - involve cases where women were wrongfully convicted of killing infants because of flawed pathological evidence;

If justice is done, the name of Keran Henderson, still in prison while she awaits her appeal, will soon be added to the sorrowful list of miscarriages of justice which is comprised of:

Stefan Kiszko:

Stefan Kiszko served 16 years in prison after being wrongly convicted of the 1975 murder of Lesley Molseed, a schoolgirl. in West Yorkshire. He was freed on appeal in 1992, and later Ronald Castree’s DNA was found to match samples taken from semen on the 11-year-old’s clothes. He was jailed for life for the murder in 2007.

Stephen Downing;

Stephen Downing spent 27 years in jail for beating Wendy Sewell, a typist, to death in Bakewell. But his conviction was quashed in 2002 after a campaign by then-editor of the Matlock Mercury Don Hale, who said Mr Downing had been interviewed without legal representation and the confession he signed had been written out by a police officer.

Barry George;

Barry George went through two trials for the murder of the TV presenter Jill Dando and was eventually acquitted of the charge in August last year, eight years after he was jailed for the crime.

Derek Bentley;

Derek Bentley, 19, was hanged for involvement in the murder of Pc Sidney Miles in 1953. His family campaigned to clear his name, saying he had severe learning difficulties and the mental age of 11. In 1998 his conviction was overturned by the Court of Appeal because the original trial judge had misdirected the jury on points of law.

Judith Ward;

Judith Ward spent 18 years in jail for the deaths of 12 people aboard an army coach blown up on the M62 in February 1973. Her conviction was quashed in 1992 after her lawyers argued the trial jury should have been told of her history of mental illness.

Three Appeal Court judges concluded Ms Ward’s conviction had been “secured by ambush” and said that government forensic scientists withheld vital information.

Winston Silcott:

Winston Silcott was cleared of murdering Pc Keith Blakelock during the Broadwater Farm riots in Tottenham in 1985, after new evidence came to light.

He spent six years in prison for Pc Keith Blakelock’s murder before successfully appealing his conviction. But he was not released as he was also serving a second life sentence for the murder of a boxer in East London in 1984.

He finally left prison after serving 17 years for stabbing 24-year-old Anthony Smith to death. He has always said he acted in self-defence after Mr Smith attacked him.

Suzanne Holdsworth;

Baby-sitter Suzanne Holdsworth spent three years in prison for murdering Kyle Fisher, a neighbour’s two-year-old son, before she was cleared in a retrial last year. She had been jailed for life after she was convicted in 2005 of killing Kyle Fisher by repeatedly banging his head against a wooden bannister at her home in Hartlepool.

But the Court of Appeal ruled that her conviction was unsafe after new medical evidence emerged, suggesting Kyle may have died from an epileptic seizure. She was found not guilty at the retrial.

Angela Cannings;

Angela Cannings was jailed for life in 2002 for murdering her two baby sons but freed the following year after her conviction was overturned by the Court of Appeal.

Mrs Cannings from Salisbury, Wiltshire, was convicted of the murder of seven-week-old Jason in 1991, and 18-week-old Matthew in 1999. She always maintained that the two boys died of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS), or cot death.

Sally Clark:

Solicitor Sally Clark was also jailed for murdering her two baby sons, and cleared by the Court of Appeal in 2003.

The mother, from Wilmslow, Cheshire, had always protested her innocence since being jailed for life in November 1999 at Chester Crown Court. She was convicted of smothering 11-week-old Christopher in December 1996 and shaking eight-week-old Harry to death in January 1998.

In 2007 she was found dead at her home, her family said that she had never recovered from her ordeal.

Harold Levy...hlevy15@gmail.com;