Four men face trial without jury for the first time in more than 350 years - Polidicks

[url=http://uk.news.yahoo.com/21/20100112/tuk-four-men-face-trial-without-jury-6323e80.html]Source[/url] [quote]The unprecedented trial of four alleged armed robbers without a jury has begun, for the first time in more than 350 years, as a barrister for one of the men said: "We are breaking history." "John Twomey, Peter Blake, Barry Hibberd and Glen Cameron are accused of taking part in a "professionally executed" £1.75 million hold-up at a Heathrow warehouse in February 2004. The Court of Appeal ruled last year that the case should be heard by a judge alone because of the danger of jury tampering. It is the first major criminal trial in England and Wales to be held without a jury, and is taking place at the Royal Courts of Justice. As the case was about to open it was the judge, Mr Justice Treacy, who was formally put in charge of the defendants by the clerk of the court, rather than any jury. Earlier during legal submissions Sam Stein QC, for Hibberd, remarked: "We are breaking history. This is the first time that a court has started a jury-less trial." Twomey, 61, of New Milton, Hants; Blake, 57, of Notting Hill, west London; Hibberd, 43, of Shepherd's Bush, west London; and Cameron, 50, of New Milton, Hampshire all deny a series of charges including robbery and firearm possession. As prosecution barrister Simon Russell Flint QC was about to open the case, the judge explained how he had decided to adapt the normal procedure by which juries are given responsibility for a case. He said: "At this stage the defendants would have been put in the charge of the jury and, although it is not apparently a strict legal requirement that they are, I have asked the court clerk to adapt the normal formula and to put me in charge of the various counts on the indictment." Then, instead of reading out all 18 charges as she would have done to the jury, the clerk simply asked the judge to confirm he had seen the indictment. She then informed the judge that the defendants had pleaded not guilty and that it was in his charge to say whether they were guilty or not - the task usually given to jurors.[/quote] [img]http://d.yimg.com/i/ng/ne/pressass/20100112/14/1865555948-four-men-face-trial-jury.jpg#200,200[/img]

Get Sal Esposito to be in the Jury. [sp]Its the Juror cat. [/sp]

"I swear I was innocent! Yeah yeah, we're all innocent."

I'm sure this was done with good intentions - with such a big case, I can understand the jury might've been tampered with. But I think this could end up as a slippery slope to having more trials done without a jury - and that ain't right. I hope this doesn't happen again.

Oh, wow, this would never fly in America.

Interesting. I've never been fond of juries to be honest

[QUOTE=demisemiquaver;19591858]Interesting. I've never been fond of juries to be honest[/QUOTE] Why? Did they get you locked away?

[QUOTE=Madman_Andre;19591854]Oh, wow, this would never fly in America.[/QUOTE] I doubt it'd fly here if it were put to the public.

This would never happen in america [sp]to white people[/sp]!

[QUOTE=radioactive;19591863]Why? Did they get you locked away?[/QUOTE] No, just something about having random people from the public helping decide someone's fate doesn't feel right to me.