Written question asked by Lord Campbell-Savours (Labour), in the House of Lords. It was answered by Lord Goldsmith (Labour) on Tuesday, 28 November 2006.

Crime: Rape

Question: asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether the relevant background documentation disclosing the multiple identities and history of false accusations made by the accused in the Warren Blackwell case were made available to (a) the defence at the time of the original trial and conviction in October 1999; and (b) the Attorney-General at the time of his request on appeal for an increase in sentence in 2001.

Answer: At the time of the original trial, the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) was aware of only one alias. This related to the previous convictions that the reviewing Crown prosecutor decided incorrectly were not relevant for the purposes of disclosure. Since then, it has been discovered that the complainant has used several identities and made a number of false allegations. The CPS was not aware of this at the time of the trial or the request on appeal for an increase in sentence and, therefore, the information could not have been disclosed. None of this information was known to the Attorney-General's Office at the time of the decision to seek a review of the sentence.

Secondary information

Type: Written question
Reference: 687 c41WA; 4
Session: 2006-07
Subjects: Disclosure of information Appeals Crown Prosecution Service Attorney General Evidence of previous convictions Personation Rape Miscarriages of justice Perjury Sentencing Rights of accused Blackwell, Warren
Link: View this Written question on www.publications.parliament.uk