“As there are two issues before us, it stands to reason that we shall deliver two judgments, and these are as follows.
“In the case of Angela Clarkson, we subscribe to the view that at the original trial, the evidence of the prosecution was so tainted by perjury, and falsehood, no jury in the land would have found Thompson guilty without that tainted evidence. In this case, we have to bear in mind, at the time of the trial there was no DNA evidence linking the defendant to the victim, so we must conclude Thompson should have been found not guilty of the murder of Angela Clarkson. This verdict is unanimous, and in addition, we have reached the conclusion that, at the appeal of this case, the accused’s right to silence, under article six of the Act, had been violated, and the new evidence should not have been admitted. However, we are sure, if the appeal judges had possessed the evidence of perjury and falsehood, there is no doubt in our minds that their Lordships would have reached the same conclusions as ourselves.”
“With hindsight, we now know the crown have turned up new evidence, which would tend to indicate the possible guilt of the accused but as we all know, a person cannot be tried twice for the same crime.”
The excitement within the defence team was reaching unbearable levels as the implications of the judge’s verdict began to sink in, and they waited with baited breath for the next judgement as the judge continued,
“In the case of the murder of Diane Wilson we are drawn to a different conclusion. By a majority decision we were unable to agree that there are sufficient grounds to declare that verdict unsafe. I need hardly remind anybody here, in this case, after discounting the false confession, all anybody has to go on is the fact that Harry Thompson was probably the last person to see this young girl alive apart from her killer. It is fair to say here, the police were totally unable to link her disappearance and subsequent death with any other living person. In this case, the accused admitted quite freely that, after sex, they quarrelled, and it is on this basis alone, we think the police were quite correct to establish a prima facie case against Thompson. In this trial the DNA evidence was not called into question, presumably on the basis that, if Thompson admitted to having sex with the girl, and his sample matched that taken from her, then, it was indeed his. Now, we are faced with the vexed question of the discovery of samples taken from her clothing. Evidence which was not available at the trial, and we have to ask ourselves how did it get there? Was it during intercourse, immediately afterwards or some other time? Does this discovery violate Thompson’s right to silence? The answer to that is, by a majority decision we think that it does, and we also rule his right to silence had already been breached at his original trial. In fairness, we have to say this is where we feel this Act falls down and it is a cause of great concern to us here. With the benefit of hindsight, we can all sit in judgment, but who would have thought that, at the outset of the original trial, the use of Thompson’s DNA in the Wilson case would be ruled invalid at a later date simply because his sample had been specifically donated for testing in the Clarkson case. We hasten to add, had another sample been obtained, and tested this defence, and our ruling here today, would not have been possible.”
In court, the atmosphere was pure electric. Nobody in their wildest dreams could have predicted any such outcome. Despite repeated calls for order, it took quite some time before order was restored, and the judge was able to continue,
“If there are any more outbursts of this nature, I shall clear the court without a moment’s hesitation. These are very serious issues which are being decided here, and, they go right to the heart of British Justice.”
“Before I conclude this verdict, both my learned colleagues and I are of the opinion that the papers on this case should be sent to the presiding judge hearing the case against the prisoner Chambers, as he may feel, as a result of that person’s contribution in coming forward voluntarily before the appeal court to admit he had been forced to perjure himself, then some reduction in his sentence might be called for.”
The presiding judge then turned to Harry and, addressed him as follows, “Young man, it goes without saying that you will be released from custody with immediate effect, but I hasten to add, you will have to live with your conscience for a long time to come. I am sure you will realise your release, from years of incarceration, is due solely to the diligence and expertise of your defence counsel. You are indeed a very fortunate young man to have found such a very able person to defend you.”
Once the judges had left the chamber it was sheer pandemonium. All the reporters, and photographers, jostled each other for pictures, and statements, and it was with great difficulty they reached the sanctuary of one of the inner interview rooms. Everybody was in a tremendous state of euphoria, for a few moments nobody could speak. Then, as the mood gradually subsided, it seemed as though everybody wanted to speak at once. Eventually, they all gave way to Irene, who was, without doubt the heroine of the hour.
Irene’s address was short and sweet, “To everybody here who has worked so hard on behalf of Harry and myself, all I can say is we are all totally indebted to you. When we finally leave here, let me warn you we saw nothing here compared to the reception which awaits us once we venture outside. All I ask is, we try to keep the press away from Harry as much as possible, and we get into the cars with utmost speed to try to put some distance between us, and them. I know it’s difficult for the press, but they will have ample time later to get their stories, besides which, they will all be very busy right now sending off the results of the appeal.”
“I know this is a time for celebration, and everybody wants to have a word or two from Harry, but first of all can you leave Harry in the capable hands of myself, and Michael Mulrooney. We both have something to say to him which can’t wait, which we hope will have a significant bearing on the events which have just taken place.”
Harry wondered what on earth was going on as everybody vacated the room leaving him in the company of his principal defence team. As the door closed behind them, Michael leaned against it as Irene spoke to Harry.
“Harry, as of now you are a free man but Michael and I have to tell you this is not quite the end. Although you’ve gained your freedom on what will, without doubt, be called a technicality, legally there is nothing anybody can do about it, but we have to tell you it’s a rod you might not have to bear for the rest of your life. We can’t guarantee anything at this stage although we are more than hopeful that we will clear your name. First of all, we have to tell you that until a few months ago you had a twin brother.”
Harry looked at Irene, and Michael. It was quite apparent this news was coming as a complete shock, and it was very visible in his facial expression, and body language. He put his hand on the table in order to steady himself and prepare for whatever came next, as Irene continued, “I know this is coming as a complete shock, but, we’ve got to get all this out of the way before we leave here. Your mother, when she became pregnant, continued to ovulate, and she also became pregnant with your twin brother Anthony. In medical terms, this is a very rare occurrence. It’s known as a staggered birth. For a moment now, I want you to think about the state your mother must have been in at the time. Being pregnant outside of marriage was one thing, and to give birth to twins was even worse, but to conceive twice like this, with all the attendant and unwanted publicity, it was too much for your poor mother to bear. This is why you were given up for adoption then, following a pact with the doctor who attended your birth, she went home to tell her husband to be that she was expecting his child. Four weeks after giving birth to you, she came back to hospital to give birth to your brother, Anthony, after which, she and her fiancée, got married.”
I have to tell you it wasn’t the happiest of marriages, due mainly in part to your father resenting the fact, to some extent, he had been forced into the marriage, so there were frequent flare ups involving your mother and your brother. She could see Harry was becoming decidedly nervous, and it was quite apparent, he was more than a
nxious to find out who his actual parents were. She deliberately paused for a moment, urging him to sit down, saying as she did so, “I’m afraid it doesn’t get much better, Harry, so please be patient with me.”
“Your mother wrote to you whilst you were in prison, and you replied insisting that you couldn’t agree to any contact, let alone a meeting as long as you were in prison. Whilst reading that letter, your mother suffered a tremendous stroke which left her blind, deaf, and completely paralysed. As a result, she exists now only with the aid of a life support system.” She paused again because she knew she was coming to the hardest part, and she was willing herself to stifle the emotion mounting deep inside her. Your mother’s maiden name was Paula Bibby, and her married name was Harris – Paula Harris. I don’t suppose that means a lot to you, but when I tell you who in all probability your father is, things might look a little more clear. This is because we think your father is Timothy Harris, the disgraced MP, who was recently sent to prison for committing perjury. We can only say we think he is your father because the tests haven’t yet been conducted, but we are hopeful this will take place sometime next week. As you will have read in the press, Timothy Harris was also involved with Angela Clarkson, and it was he who gave her the watch which you subsequently found. It has to be said that, as a result of the cover up which followed, you were drawn into the murder inquiry. Had there not been any cover up, or had Timothy Harris come forward, then you would not have become implicated in the Clarkson case. Having said that it doesn’t mean that the police wouldn’t have arrested and charged you with the murder of Diane, but it would have meant that the case against you was a lot weaker and for now there’s no point in us wasting valuable time speculating upon what might have been.”
“Well, what about my brother? he asked?”
She knew she had to answer, and she knew she had to face him, no matter how hard, or painful, she found the ordeal,
“Well, I was just coming to that because your brother Anthony died a few months ago. Apparently, he dabbled with drugs, and he was also on medication. The combination of the two caused a reaction, as a result of which he died in a coma but we’ll deal with that later. Now look at me Harry,” she said, with her voice quivering with emotion, “we have an application going before the courts to exhume the body of your brother in order to carry out DNA tests as it’s our belief that your brother Anthony is the murderer of your girlfriend Diane Wilson, and also Angela Clarkson.”
Almost at breaking point, she continued, “before we can do that we need to establish first and foremost, that your real father is Timothy Harris, because if it turns out that he isn’t, then the forensic tests already carried out cannot lie. You understand what we are saying now, don’t you Harry? For your sake, I hope and pray to God that he is because, if he isn’t there’s no point in continuing with the exhumation in an effort to prove your innocence. This is because, in these circumstances, Anthony’s DNA will not match those taken from the clothing of the two women.”
Harry was no longer in the mood for celebrating; the shine had been well and truly rubbed off the victory. He sat there, motionless, with his head in his hands almost oblivious to the things going on around him, still wondering if there was ever going to be an end to this nightmare. Then he became aware of Michael standing in front of him saying,
“We think you had better look at these pictures of your brother. We have to say the resemblance is absolutely uncanny, so much so even though you were born weeks apart, you’re both truly twins, but not ‘Identical’ twins in the accepted sense as you were both conceived with separate eggs. So we’re hoping, and praying, for the best possible outcome. Before we go any further, we have to tell you that we couldn’t introduce any of this fresh evidence in court, as we felt that we might be overstepping the mark insofar as we had objected to the prosecution bringing in fresh DNA evidence. Not only that, but we have our own forensic expert waiting to testify that the new evidence could, and I emphasise the word “could,” be flawed, or contaminated.”
“You see you mustn’t run away thinking, just because you have an identical twin brother, that his DNA will match yours exactly. According to our expert, if the pair of you are identical, then, a match of 90/95%, would be considered to be more than sufficient, taking into account any deterioration which could have occurred due to exposure to the elements. After this, you then have to face up to the fact that your brother killed both of these women and it was his DNA which was left behind. Although Anthony’s death was drug-related, we have to tell you that according to the autopsy report, it was due, in part, to another drug he was taking for medicinal purposes. Apparently, the combination of the two drugs caused him to go into a coma, and he literally drowned in his own vomit. His badly decomposed body was not discovered for a long time afterwards.”
“Going back to your mother, we also have to tell you that she and Timothy Harris, had agreed to divorce but following your mother’s illness, Mr. Harris applied to the courts to have her life support system switched off due to the fact that she appeared to be totally incapacitated. The judge hearing the application ruled, if there was no improvement in her medical condition within seven days, then she would be allowed to die. Fortunately for both of you, the medical team discovered that she could hear, and she had limited use of the little finger on her right hand. By this means, she is able to communicate with those around her but it’s strictly on a limited basis, and it’s very time-consuming. When you get back home you can make arrangements to see her, bearing in mind as far as we’re aware, she hasn’t been told of the outcome of today’s proceedings. We thought this should be something very private between the two of you.”
“Irrespective of whether or not, Timothy Harris is your real father, you will have to consider the fact that you will have a say in the decisions to keep your mother alive. As her son by birth, legally, this decision can’t just be left in the hands of your father. All we can say regarding this is, according to the medical team, she’s not in any pain as far as they are aware. How long her condition will remain in this state is a matter of pure speculation.”
Michael indicated to Irene he’d finished, and she asked Harry if he had any questions to ask about the news they’d just imparted. He didn’t look up to face them, and merely shook his head whilst continuing to stare at the floor. She moved a little closer to him, saying, “Harry we know it’s been a long hard day. You must feel as though you have been put through the wringer, but you have to appreciate that there was no other way for us to tell you. We had to tell you at this very moment because, there’s so much going on, and so much more which still has to happen.”
“Before we go, I must warn you what to expect from today onwards, and in the near future. As a result of the verdict today the press will have a field day at your expense. In all probability, you’ll see banner headlines in the papers proclaiming, “double killer freed on a technicality. Killer freed to strike again, and countless other variations on the same thing. Unfortunately, there’s nothing we can do to stop this type of thing happening, so, for your own sake, you’re going to have to keep a very low profile indeed. To this end, we’ve arranged a safe house for you, and we can’t stress too much how important it is for you to stay there keeping out of sight.”
“Dealing with the press of tomorrow is one thing, but you will also have to contend with the press of the future, and, by this, I mean the eruption which is bound to follow once the exhumation order becomes public knowledge, coupled with an explosion which will be created if and when it’s confirmed that Timothy Harris is your real father. Believe me, there’s no way you can escape any of this, and it certainly won’t be an easy ride. Then, you will also have to come to terms with reality after all the tests have been concluded. Hopefully by then, we will be able to prove to everybody that you weren’t guilty, and this will set off another mad scramble with press, TV interviews, and all manner of things. Strictly speaking, you aren’t going to have anything like a normal, or a priva
te life, for quite a considerable period of time. Whilst all this is taking place, you will also have to consider the impact all of this will be having on your adoptive mother. Don’t forget, since the trial she hasn’t seen or heard from you, and I know she’s taken events so far very hard indeed and it’s only going to get harder still for her.”
Still staring at the floor, Harry finally spoke but his voice betrayed no sign of emotion whatsoever as he said, “Before we leave here let me say to both of you, I really do appreciate everything you have done for me during this terribly dark period of my life. As you said, it has been a very trying day and I realise my ordeal is far from over. I also realise I am deeply indebted to a lot of people, and I’ll do my best to ensure that their trust, and belief in me, has not been misplaced. Right now, the news you have given me has only just begun to sink in and I’m finding it very difficult to come to terms with. All I want now is to be allowed to go somewhere quiet, and peaceful, whilst I contemplate and reflect upon my life before deciding where I go from here. At some stage, I know I have to face the press, and the public, so I think it would be better if we prepared a short statement for those persons from the press waiting outside on the basis that no questions will be asked or answered. Following that release, we should be allowed to leave in peace without being hounded. After Michael had prepared a statement for the press they made their way to the exit.
Beyond Innocence Page 31