The official envelope drops on your door mat and you can see the word summons clearly through the address pane. Surely not a speed camera or forgotten trip into London’s congestion zone? With trepidation the envelope is opened and complete panic takes over: it’s from The Old Bailey and I am summonsed to appear. Ray Williams writes.
Before the words "Not Guilty My Lord" have left my lips – here we go yet another miscarriage of justice – but then there could be a big payout after several years of incarceration. Total panic does set in though as I realise that it is a jury summons. This is a catastrophe for any SME [small and medium enterprise] and I can ill afford to be away at any time, let alone when we are extremely busy. As someone who spent 30 years in the police service and frequently gave evidence at court The Old Bailey held no actual fears for me, but a lengthy fraud or murder trail would be an extended problem.
The Old Bailey itself stands on the site of the west gate of the Roman City of London, a location that had served as a prison from the time of William the Conqueror. Dick Whittington, in the office of Lord Mayor, built a new prison on the site in 1423 with a court first being held there in 1539. Known as New Gate prison it was also the site of many executions, the last being in 1868. Earlier in 1670 William Penn, the Quaker, and founder of Pennsylvania, was tried for unlawful assembly but found not guilty by the jury. So angered was the judge that he sent the jury to prison overnight so that they might reconsider their verdict. Not surprisingly this case went on to make case law and Penn was found not guilty. A reassuring precedent for prospective jurors.
William Penn also had a special interest for me as that was the name of my secondary school in South London. An illustrious educational establishment which degenerated so much after my departure that it was shut down and totally rebranded! Closing a school is one thing but nothing compared to 1835 when three boys under 14 were tried and convicted of burglary at The Old Bailey and subsequently hung.
Back to the present and the case before you, namely my own attendance. Major trials are the lifeblood of this court and can run into weeks and months. However, the literature that accompanies the summons tells prospective jurors that they should expect to make themselves available for two weeks. For me this would be manageable and my team could keep things going via the odd phone call and early or late office meting, any longer would have a serious impact upon clients and the day to day running of the business.
I obtained two deferments but eventually "the" day arrived. Not surprisingly access to the building is rigorous with airport style searching and proof of identity required. Just in case there was a query over my passport I also wore my Worshipful Company of Security Professionals tie and carried my Security Institute membership card.
Up five floors and I was in the jurors’ waiting room. The bailiff’s staff were most helpful and the morning began with an introductory video outlining the operation of a trial court and responsibilities of a juror. Being a video producer myself I was pleased to see the media being used to communicate a substantial amount of essential information that might otherwise be overlooked in a verbal briefing. As I looked around at my fellow jurors-in-waiting I saw a chap I had served with in the police, albeit that he was some 20 years younger than me. "It’s all changed now, guvnor," was his response when I asked him what he was doing there and I learnt that the rules had been changed to include a whole range of professions including doctors and surgeons. I personally thought that we were short of all three categories of profession, let alone the concerns of an accused when he learns that he is to be tried by a member of the organisation that had put him in the dock!
In a similar way, from talking to my fellow jurors, I was unable to understand how some people could be called for service two and three times, whilst others not at all. The best example was a very middle class lady who told me she had been called twice whilst her seven siblings who would love to be called, had not once been required to serve on a single occassion? Whilst the foregoing is anecdotal and not remotely statistically significant, further research might be productive and avoid the necessity for doctors and police officers to attend court.
Later on my first morning I was one of 16-plus prospective jurors-in-waiting called into court for possible selection. This was a murder trial set for four weeks duration. Not good news for my business. However, in addition to having to declare my previous police service the judge also allowed any juror to advise him in private of personal difficulties that the duration of the trial might hold for them. This was sufficient to exclude me and I was back up to the waiting room and an early release that day.
The following day I was actually empanelled and sworn. How different the view of a juror to that of a police officer giving evidence. The judge commenced by saying that the case we were to sit on, whilst important, was not in the category of a murder, but had been referred to the Old Bailey to alleviate pressure on the crown courts. There then followed description of the functioning of the Court and the process that was about to take place. This was followed by a clear explanation of the offence we were about to try. Evidence of course was the key, but a witness’s demeanour under cross examination would also say a great deal.
Looking round the court I imagined how my co-jurors might try to characterise the various actors: the judge and barristers naturally wore wigs but bore little resemblance to the notorious ‘Hanging’ Judge Jeffries, Boyd QC or Rumpole of the Bailey. The defendant did not look like Fagin, and as for ourselves, were we something out of a Hogarth print?
Eventually we retired and as we sat around the table in the jurors’ room I realised that we were a perfect cross-section of society and equipped to carry out our responsibilities. What is said in the jury room cannot be disclosed, but suffice to say within a very short period of time we had returned to court and the foreman delivered our not guilty verdict. The evidence heard in the case is all in the public domain and from a personal point of view I was surprised that the Crown Prosecution Service had sent it for trial with such a paucity of evidence, bearing in mind that as jurors we were advised that cases at the Old Bailey cost £140 of public money each minute. Our trial had lasted three days!
In conclusion, whilst jury service did cause some disruption to business it was manageable and proved to be an interesting experience and one I would recommend be undertaken by any security professional.
About the author
Ray Williams is managing director of Williams Management Communication. His company produces security training films for corporate clients. He can be contacted via 020 7315 6700 and [email protected]
