0:00:02 > 0:00:05The British justice system is the envy of the world.
0:00:05 > 0:00:08But in the past mistakes have been made.
0:00:08 > 0:00:11Between the year 1900 and the year 1964
0:00:11 > 0:00:15approximately 800 people were hanged in the United Kingdom.
0:00:15 > 0:00:19Many of those desperately protested their innocence.
0:00:19 > 0:00:22Some of these long-standing convictions
0:00:22 > 0:00:24could be a miscarriage of justice.
0:00:24 > 0:00:26She's received most of the blows in this position
0:00:26 > 0:00:28once she's already bleeding.
0:00:28 > 0:00:31In this series, a living relative will attempt
0:00:31 > 0:00:33to clear their family name...
0:00:33 > 0:00:37They got no evidence. They're just trying to haul anybody in for it.
0:00:37 > 0:00:39..searching for new evidence...
0:00:39 > 0:00:42I can make the 32 fire both calibres.
0:00:44 > 0:00:48..with help from two of the UK's leading barristers.
0:00:48 > 0:00:49One for the defence...
0:00:49 > 0:00:52This is a very worrying case.
0:00:52 > 0:00:54I think the evidence is very suspect.
0:00:54 > 0:00:56..and one for the prosecution.
0:00:56 > 0:01:00I'm still of the view that this was a cogent case of murder,
0:01:00 > 0:01:03committed during the course of a robbery.
0:01:03 > 0:01:06They're on a mission to solve the mystery,
0:01:06 > 0:01:10submitting their findings to a senior Crown Court judge.
0:01:10 > 0:01:14There is a real risk that there has been a miscarriage of justice here.
0:01:14 > 0:01:18I will look again at the evidence in the light of the arguments that you
0:01:18 > 0:01:20both have put before me.
0:01:20 > 0:01:24Can this modern investigation rewrite history?
0:01:32 > 0:01:36Manchester, July the 19th, 1933.
0:01:39 > 0:01:43In the stifling summer heat 61-year-old wealthy widow,
0:01:43 > 0:01:47Frances Levin lay down to rest after lunch.
0:01:47 > 0:01:52Shortly after 2:30pm her maid, Freda Phillips, retired upstairs
0:01:52 > 0:01:56to complete her chores, leaving the back door open for air.
0:01:56 > 0:02:01Returning to the kitchen two hours later, she made a grisly discovery.
0:02:01 > 0:02:03An iron bar lay on the floor,
0:02:03 > 0:02:07a bloodied shirt, used to wipe it clean, thrown on the table.
0:02:07 > 0:02:10Her employer, Mrs Levin, was found in the front room.
0:02:10 > 0:02:13She'd been brutally bludgeoned, and left for dead.
0:02:15 > 0:02:17The murder investigation focused on hunting a man
0:02:17 > 0:02:21who the maid had earlier glimpsed from an upstairs window,
0:02:21 > 0:02:22exiting the house.
0:02:23 > 0:02:27Eight days later, a 47-year-old one-eyed local,
0:02:27 > 0:02:29called William Burtoft, was arrested.
0:02:29 > 0:02:32And, according to detectives, quickly confessed.
0:02:34 > 0:02:39At Manchester Strangeways prison on the 19th of December, 1933,
0:02:39 > 0:02:40he was hanged.
0:02:42 > 0:02:44That's Nanny Cookie.
0:02:44 > 0:02:46And that's dad's... Dad, John.
0:02:46 > 0:02:50Kate O'Reilly, a descendant of William Burtoft's brother,
0:02:50 > 0:02:53only recently discovered her ancestor's fate.
0:02:53 > 0:02:56William Burtoft was my grandad's uncle.
0:02:56 > 0:03:00It's strange to feel like you've got a murderer in the family.
0:03:00 > 0:03:02I'd love to find out what his character was like.
0:03:03 > 0:03:06She and her mum know little about Burtoft's life.
0:03:06 > 0:03:10He spent time at sea in the Navy and during World War I, the merchant
0:03:10 > 0:03:13fleet, before hitting harder times on Manchester's streets.
0:03:13 > 0:03:16He seemed like a little bit of a down and out.
0:03:16 > 0:03:19He had nowhere to live and he was an alcoholic.
0:03:19 > 0:03:23Doesn't mean that people like that go around murdering people.
0:03:23 > 0:03:25- Your dad's grandad.- Yep.
0:03:25 > 0:03:28Kate is keen to learn more about her great great uncle
0:03:28 > 0:03:31and whether he was really guilty.
0:03:32 > 0:03:35There's a lot of suspicious things that just doesn't add up
0:03:35 > 0:03:36with the case at all.
0:03:36 > 0:03:39It would be nice to find that he is innocent.
0:03:39 > 0:03:41If we can find justice for him, then that would be great.
0:03:43 > 0:03:45Helping Kate to unravel the suspicious case
0:03:45 > 0:03:49are two of the country's best legal minds.
0:03:49 > 0:03:52Jeremy Dein QC is a top defence barrister, with over 30 years
0:03:52 > 0:03:55experience specialising in serious crime.
0:03:56 > 0:04:00Analysing the case for the prosecution is Sasha Wass QC,
0:04:00 > 0:04:04who has successfully convicted some of the country's most notorious offenders.
0:04:05 > 0:04:08Together, they'll scrutinise the facts,
0:04:08 > 0:04:11searching for the new legal argument or evidence needed
0:04:11 > 0:04:14to put the case in front of a modern-day judge.
0:04:15 > 0:04:17Kate, hello. Sasha.
0:04:17 > 0:04:19But before they get started they've asked to meet with Kate.
0:04:21 > 0:04:24Do any of your other family know about this?
0:04:24 > 0:04:26- Yes.- And how have they reacted?
0:04:26 > 0:04:28My husband thinks he's innocent.
0:04:28 > 0:04:31- Yes.- He knows the area so he said he couldn't get there that quick.
0:04:31 > 0:04:34Oh, right, OK, yes. You've done your own investigations?
0:04:34 > 0:04:36- Yeah, a little bit.- OK.
0:04:36 > 0:04:39Obviously, you didn't know your great great uncle.
0:04:39 > 0:04:44- No.- But if he was wrongly hanged, how would that make you feel?
0:04:44 > 0:04:46Just picked up as an innocent person and then wrongly hanged.
0:04:46 > 0:04:49It's quite sad, though, isn't it?
0:04:49 > 0:04:52Because then there was a real murderer that got away with it.
0:04:52 > 0:04:53So it's a double injustice, isn't it?
0:04:53 > 0:04:57- Well, yeah.- An innocent man was hanged and a guilty man
0:04:57 > 0:04:59- was free to do whatever he wanted. - Yeah.
0:04:59 > 0:05:04My role in this inquiry is to look back at William Burtoft's case
0:05:04 > 0:05:10and to see if I can find some new angle, which we can use to form
0:05:10 > 0:05:14the basis for possibly reopening the case in the future.
0:05:14 > 0:05:19I prosecute and defend but I do not want to uphold this conviction
0:05:19 > 0:05:22at all costs. Far from it.
0:05:22 > 0:05:25If I find evidence which causes me to be concerned,
0:05:25 > 0:05:27I will put that before a judge.
0:05:27 > 0:05:31Rest assured, that is my role, to be as fair as I possibly can be.
0:05:31 > 0:05:33- OK.- Given all the evidence. - Brilliant.
0:05:33 > 0:05:35All right, thank you very much.
0:05:35 > 0:05:36- Thank you.- Thanks.
0:05:36 > 0:05:40The first task for Jeremy and Sasha is to get to grips
0:05:40 > 0:05:42with the key facts of the murder.
0:05:42 > 0:05:45Frances Levin, a 61-year-old woman,
0:05:45 > 0:05:49was brutally attacked in her own home in Cheetham Hill,
0:05:49 > 0:05:52on the outskirts of Manchester.
0:05:53 > 0:05:56Mrs Levin was confronted in the sitting room.
0:05:56 > 0:05:58But she wasn't alone in the house.
0:05:58 > 0:06:00Upstairs was her maid, Freda.
0:06:00 > 0:06:02She claimed to hear nothing of the attack.
0:06:03 > 0:06:09Her maid was in an upstairs room and had an opportunity of looking down
0:06:09 > 0:06:13and seeing a man wearing a trilby walking out of the house
0:06:13 > 0:06:15from a side alley of the house.
0:06:15 > 0:06:20She went down to the kitchen, she found a poker, bloodstained,
0:06:20 > 0:06:22immediately ran next door for help.
0:06:22 > 0:06:26And the next door neighbour found Mrs Levin's body.
0:06:26 > 0:06:30They called the emergency services but sadly Mrs Levin died shortly
0:06:30 > 0:06:34- afterwards.- Sasha, we know that there were a number of witnesses.
0:06:34 > 0:06:36Mrs Levin's maid.
0:06:36 > 0:06:39An electrician next door, Mr Woodcock.
0:06:39 > 0:06:42And Francis Levin had had lunch with her brother.
0:06:42 > 0:06:45So there were people around.
0:06:45 > 0:06:46Witnesses, possible suspects.
0:06:46 > 0:06:50And what is it that led the police to William Burtoft?
0:06:50 > 0:06:53One of the most salient features of this case, of course,
0:06:53 > 0:06:56is that William Burtoft was arrested,
0:06:56 > 0:06:59and made a full confession.
0:06:59 > 0:07:01But what I think we've got to look at very carefully
0:07:01 > 0:07:03is whether there is any evidence capable of supporting
0:07:03 > 0:07:05that confession.
0:07:06 > 0:07:08Whilst the barristers delve into the case,
0:07:08 > 0:07:11Kate has arrived in Cheetham Hill, at the location
0:07:11 > 0:07:12of this brutal murder.
0:07:12 > 0:07:15She's meeting crime writer John Eddleston.
0:07:15 > 0:07:18Could his research into the case provide any new insight?
0:07:18 > 0:07:22- Hello, Kate.- Hiya, John.- Nice to meet you.- Nice to meet you, too.
0:07:22 > 0:07:25This is the street. We're actually looking at the same spot at the time.
0:07:25 > 0:07:28- OK.- But what you want to see, of course, is the crime scene.
0:07:28 > 0:07:31- Yes, please.- Come with me.- OK.
0:07:31 > 0:07:34The victim and her family lived at Claremont House.
0:07:34 > 0:07:38The property no longer exists but John has crime scene photographs
0:07:38 > 0:07:40taken on the day of the murder.
0:07:41 > 0:07:45Well, unfortunately, both her house and the doctor next door, both gone.
0:07:45 > 0:07:48- Yep.- But you can see, actually, the wall,
0:07:48 > 0:07:50that's where the killer came in and out.
0:07:50 > 0:07:51This is the kitchen.
0:07:51 > 0:07:53Remember that the killer came in through the back door.
0:07:53 > 0:07:57- Yes.- We've got the fire grate here where the weapon was picked up from.
0:07:57 > 0:08:01- Yep.- This is the actual room that they think the murder took place in.
0:08:01 > 0:08:03- Right, OK.- We've got a piano on the side here.
0:08:03 > 0:08:05- Yeah.- Nice grand clock.
0:08:05 > 0:08:07But if you look at the settee and the window,
0:08:07 > 0:08:09you see a heavily-bloodstained pillow.
0:08:09 > 0:08:11- Oh, yeah.- So she was lying here.
0:08:12 > 0:08:16Mrs Levin was found lying on the sofa, just as the maid had left her,
0:08:16 > 0:08:18before heading upstairs to her chores.
0:08:20 > 0:08:22That's the view that the maid, Freda, would have had,
0:08:22 > 0:08:24looking down from her room.
0:08:24 > 0:08:25That's the wicker gate.
0:08:25 > 0:08:31And she says she saw a man in a brown coat, trilby hat, walking out.
0:08:31 > 0:08:32That must almost certainly be the killer.
0:08:32 > 0:08:36- Yep.- Freda Phillips would have got her description of the man from this
0:08:36 > 0:08:38- angle.- That's all she could have seen, yeah.
0:08:38 > 0:08:42The maid's description of the man, plus the apparent theft,
0:08:42 > 0:08:44led police to suspect the culprit would be found
0:08:44 > 0:08:46amongst the local homeless ranks.
0:08:48 > 0:08:52In the 1930s, the world economy was in a Great Depression.
0:08:52 > 0:08:54Britain's trade collapsed,
0:08:54 > 0:08:58leaving the unemployed in industrial centres, like Manchester, destitute.
0:08:58 > 0:09:02For many, now homeless, queueing at soup kitchens and habitual drinking
0:09:02 > 0:09:06of methylated spirits became a way of life.
0:09:06 > 0:09:10This growing group of vagrants were viewed by society as deviants
0:09:10 > 0:09:12and a menace to the local police.
0:09:13 > 0:09:17But how did the suspicion of an entire group of vagrants
0:09:17 > 0:09:19end up with Burtoft in the frame?
0:09:21 > 0:09:24Kate has come to Manchester Central Library to find out.
0:09:27 > 0:09:29So, there's a paper here.
0:09:29 > 0:09:31There's a picture of William.
0:09:31 > 0:09:34Seeing his face on this photo, I kind of think, ah,
0:09:34 > 0:09:36I feel a bit sorry for him.
0:09:36 > 0:09:38Because he doesn't look like...
0:09:40 > 0:09:41..like a nasty man.
0:09:41 > 0:09:43This is Miss Freda Phillips.
0:09:43 > 0:09:46The police had circulated a general description of the killer
0:09:46 > 0:09:48based on Freda Phillips' account,
0:09:48 > 0:09:51and began arresting any vagrants fitting that description.
0:09:51 > 0:09:54It says here, "Scores of men have been questioned
0:09:54 > 0:09:59"and a batch of 45 found sleeping out in Cheetham early yesterday
0:09:59 > 0:10:02"morning appeared before the magistrates later
0:10:02 > 0:10:05"on vagrancy charges and were discharged."
0:10:06 > 0:10:08It seems to be that they're targeting the homeless people.
0:10:08 > 0:10:12They just have got no evidence whatsoever.
0:10:13 > 0:10:15And they're just trying to haul anybody in for it.
0:10:17 > 0:10:21The man leading the investigation was Detective Inspector Page.
0:10:22 > 0:10:26Eight days after the murder, he was called to Hyde, Manchester,
0:10:26 > 0:10:29where a homeless man fitting the suspect's description
0:10:29 > 0:10:30had been picked up.
0:10:30 > 0:10:35The Evening Chronicle. Thursday July 27th, 1933.
0:10:35 > 0:10:37"Cheetham murder charge: man in court.
0:10:37 > 0:10:40"Dramatic arrest at Hyde.
0:10:40 > 0:10:43"Man with one eye remanded until Saturday.
0:10:43 > 0:10:45"The charge against Burtoft was a sequel
0:10:45 > 0:10:47"to one of the biggest manhunts
0:10:47 > 0:10:50"ever undertaken by the Manchester police."
0:10:50 > 0:10:53They've picked William up and they put him into a possibility category.
0:10:53 > 0:10:56Because, maybe they just want to pin it on somebody.
0:10:57 > 0:11:00A short time after his arrest, whilst in custody in Manchester,
0:11:00 > 0:11:04according to the police, Burtoft confessed to the murder.
0:11:05 > 0:11:08But did the police have any supporting witness evidence
0:11:08 > 0:11:10to corroborate his statement?
0:11:10 > 0:11:14Before we deal with the defendant and his confession,
0:11:14 > 0:11:18I think what would be quite useful is to look at whether we can place
0:11:18 > 0:11:23him anywhere near the scene of this murder by four o'clock,
0:11:23 > 0:11:25which was the time of the attack.
0:11:27 > 0:11:31At quarter past three in the afternoon Mr Burtoft
0:11:31 > 0:11:35was at Bertha's lodging house, about 15 minutes
0:11:35 > 0:11:37from the scene of the murder.
0:11:37 > 0:11:40But there's another witness, Henry Wilcock,
0:11:40 > 0:11:46who records seeing a stockily built man in a trilby at about 3:25.
0:11:46 > 0:11:50And Henry Wilcock was in the waiting room of Dr Lee's, next door.
0:11:50 > 0:11:55- Exactly.- It's 15 minutes from Bertha's, to the scene of the crime.
0:11:56 > 0:11:58On those timings,
0:11:58 > 0:12:01it's highly arguable that it could not have been William Burtoft.
0:12:01 > 0:12:05These conflicting timings raise significant doubts.
0:12:05 > 0:12:09Was Burtoft really the man at the crime scene wearing the trilby hat?
0:12:09 > 0:12:12So, then, we have Freda Phillips,
0:12:12 > 0:12:15she was in an upstairs room at about four o'clock,
0:12:15 > 0:12:20when she saw a man leave, as if he had come from the kitchen.
0:12:20 > 0:12:25She saw the trilby, and was only able to see the man's chin.
0:12:25 > 0:12:29So it's very, very poor identification evidence.
0:12:29 > 0:12:32What is highly significant is that the police felt
0:12:32 > 0:12:34that they should invite Freda Phillips
0:12:34 > 0:12:36to an identification parade.
0:12:37 > 0:12:39William Burtoft was on that parade.
0:12:39 > 0:12:43Not only did she fail to identify Burtoft,
0:12:43 > 0:12:44but she picked someone else out.
0:12:44 > 0:12:47It's very, very fragile as a basis
0:12:47 > 0:12:51for any supposedly supporting evidence.
0:12:53 > 0:12:57At Manchester Central library, Kate is re-joining crime writer
0:12:57 > 0:12:59John Eddleston, who has pieced together the hours
0:12:59 > 0:13:01after Burtoft's arrest.
0:13:01 > 0:13:03- Nice to see you again. - And you, too, John.
0:13:03 > 0:13:05So what led to his confession?
0:13:05 > 0:13:10What came after his arrest is very, very contentious indeed.
0:13:10 > 0:13:13The police versions and Burtoft's version of events
0:13:13 > 0:13:15are completely at odds.
0:13:15 > 0:13:20Burtoft is asked to account for his movements over a number of days
0:13:20 > 0:13:23before the murder and after the murder.
0:13:23 > 0:13:25Which he does.
0:13:25 > 0:13:29But he misses out the 19th, the day of the crime.
0:13:29 > 0:13:33When Inspector Page says, "Well, what about the 19th?"
0:13:33 > 0:13:39he pauses briefly and says, "Well, go on, write it down."
0:13:39 > 0:13:41And he makes a confession.
0:13:41 > 0:13:45I actually have here a handwritten copy of his confession.
0:13:45 > 0:13:47- Oh, wow.- Signed at the top, William Burtoft.
0:13:47 > 0:13:49And it's signed underneath, as well.
0:13:50 > 0:13:53"Go on, I want to tell you everything, write it down.
0:13:53 > 0:13:56"I admit being the murderer of Mrs Levin owing to drinking methylated
0:13:56 > 0:14:00"spirits. And also to the maid being where she was,
0:14:00 > 0:14:02"the old lady lost her life.
0:14:02 > 0:14:04"I was cool, calm and collected, of course,
0:14:04 > 0:14:06"when I got in the front room there.
0:14:06 > 0:14:10"The old lady was up and asking who this was.
0:14:10 > 0:14:12"I went back, got the poker from the fire range
0:14:12 > 0:14:14"and struck her repeatedly."
0:14:15 > 0:14:20So, if you're sitting in your house and a strange person comes in,
0:14:20 > 0:14:22and you know there's someone else in the house,
0:14:22 > 0:14:24what would be your first reaction?
0:14:24 > 0:14:26- I'd shout for help.- You'd scream as loud as you could.
0:14:26 > 0:14:29You'd shout for help. She hasn't screamed.
0:14:29 > 0:14:32- Hasn't shouted for help. - Yep.- Hasn't tried to escape.
0:14:32 > 0:14:34Does that make sense to you?
0:14:34 > 0:14:39- No.- He's convicted on that confession alone.
0:14:39 > 0:14:42And that confession does not make sense.
0:14:42 > 0:14:45Why do you think he'd make a false confession?
0:14:45 > 0:14:49Burtoft himself says that he was subject to the third-degree.
0:14:49 > 0:14:52"We know you did it, tell us the truth, admit it was you."
0:14:52 > 0:14:56After three hours of incessant questioning, from all sides,
0:14:56 > 0:14:59he finally said, I've had enough.
0:14:59 > 0:15:00So it's a question of who you believe.
0:15:00 > 0:15:06- Yeah.- Either it's genuine and William Burtoft is the killer,
0:15:06 > 0:15:10or it is manufactured by one or more police officers,
0:15:10 > 0:15:11present in that room.
0:15:11 > 0:15:17- And he's got to sign it under intense pressure.- Yeah.
0:15:17 > 0:15:21So the police had a confession but the big question is,
0:15:21 > 0:15:23was it a genuine admission of guilt?
0:15:26 > 0:15:30In London, Jeremy has been analysing the confession statement
0:15:30 > 0:15:32and also has grave concerns.
0:15:32 > 0:15:35He says, "I admit being the murderer of Mrs Levin.
0:15:35 > 0:15:38"owing to drinking methylated spirits,
0:15:38 > 0:15:41"and a lot to the maid being where she was,
0:15:41 > 0:15:44"that the old lady lost her life."
0:15:44 > 0:15:46We know that Freda Phillips was upstairs
0:15:46 > 0:15:50and she said she didn't hear anything. And this reads as if
0:15:50 > 0:15:53William Burtoft knew Miss Phillips was there.
0:15:53 > 0:15:58And there's absolutely no reason for him to have known that.
0:15:58 > 0:16:02"The old lady was up and asked who this was.
0:16:02 > 0:16:04"And I went back and got the poker off the fire range
0:16:04 > 0:16:06"and struck her repeatedly."
0:16:06 > 0:16:08Is this a realistic scenario?
0:16:08 > 0:16:10There's no suggestion she screamed.
0:16:10 > 0:16:14She sort of waits patiently for him to come back with the poker.
0:16:14 > 0:16:15Is that credible?
0:16:15 > 0:16:18The way it's supposed to have happened. I don't think so.
0:16:18 > 0:16:20I just don't think anything about this confession
0:16:20 > 0:16:23has the ring of truth about it.
0:16:23 > 0:16:27So, did the police have any information to verify their claim,
0:16:27 > 0:16:28that the confession was genuine?
0:16:30 > 0:16:34Forensics scientist Liz Williams is studying crime scene photos
0:16:34 > 0:16:37and police reports from the day of the murder to find out.
0:16:38 > 0:16:41Was the murder carried out in the way the prosecution
0:16:41 > 0:16:42presented at trial?
0:16:43 > 0:16:47We've got here on screen one possible scenario
0:16:47 > 0:16:49as to how Mrs Levin was killed.
0:16:50 > 0:16:54In this proposed scenario based on the pathology reports,
0:16:54 > 0:16:57the victim never gets up from the sofa,
0:16:57 > 0:17:00but the prosecution had a different story.
0:17:00 > 0:17:03In terms of the way the prosecution case was presented,
0:17:03 > 0:17:07the allegation was that William Burtoft came in,
0:17:07 > 0:17:13that Mrs Levin saw him, stood up, that he went and got the poker,
0:17:13 > 0:17:15came back and then attacked her.
0:17:15 > 0:17:18There's no objective way that you could ever say
0:17:18 > 0:17:20that she was standing up prior to this happening.
0:17:20 > 0:17:22Or that she was laying down prior to this happening.
0:17:22 > 0:17:25- Yep.- All we know is that she was found with substantial head injuries
0:17:25 > 0:17:26on the couch.
0:17:26 > 0:17:29So there are a multitude of possible factual scenarios?
0:17:29 > 0:17:31Yeah, there's no, like, concrete forensic evidence
0:17:31 > 0:17:33that would tell you what happened beforehand.
0:17:35 > 0:17:39The prosecution account of the murder had no evidential basis.
0:17:40 > 0:17:43So what else did they present without proof?
0:17:43 > 0:17:45Is this blood staining on the cushion?
0:17:45 > 0:17:46It's what I believe it is.
0:17:46 > 0:17:49- It's consistent.- It's very heavily bloodstained.
0:17:49 > 0:17:53You can see here, we've been able to put little red circles around what
0:17:53 > 0:17:55could be potential bloodstains.
0:17:55 > 0:17:59We also read the police depositions and it said generic splashing
0:17:59 > 0:18:03on the wall, the curtain, the windowsill and a picture.
0:18:03 > 0:18:08What they're describing as splashing is generic blood on stuff.
0:18:09 > 0:18:13The police had Burtoft's clothes tested for blood splatter,
0:18:13 > 0:18:16but curiously, the results came back negative.
0:18:16 > 0:18:18And are you able to do a reconstruction for us
0:18:18 > 0:18:22so that we can actually determine whether there would be blood
0:18:22 > 0:18:24found on an assailant's clothing or person?
0:18:24 > 0:18:27We have blood staining on walls and curtains,
0:18:27 > 0:18:28we have victim on couch.
0:18:28 > 0:18:32The assailant has used some form of weapon to attack the victim.
0:18:32 > 0:18:33Physics hasn't changed.
0:18:33 > 0:18:38We can still recreate any scenario given what we know from the photos
0:18:38 > 0:18:41and from the pathologist's report.
0:18:41 > 0:18:44- Excellent.- That would be very helpful.- OK.
0:18:44 > 0:18:47Whilst the barristers evaluate the forensic evidence that was raised at
0:18:47 > 0:18:52trial, in Manchester, John is considering forensic evidence
0:18:52 > 0:18:53that was never heard in court.
0:18:53 > 0:18:56There was a fingerprint found on the purse.
0:18:57 > 0:19:00Everybody in the house, everybody who could have touched that,
0:19:00 > 0:19:02was fingerprinted and checked.
0:19:02 > 0:19:05It was almost certainly therefore left by the killer.
0:19:05 > 0:19:08- Yeah.- Now, if William Burtoft is the killer,
0:19:08 > 0:19:11the police would have checked that fingerprint against his prints and
0:19:11 > 0:19:14said, we've got you bang to rights.
0:19:14 > 0:19:16It was never mentioned at the trial.
0:19:16 > 0:19:20So, why wasn't the fingerprint evidence heard in court?
0:19:20 > 0:19:22It didn't fit the police evidence.
0:19:22 > 0:19:25It wasn't Burtoft's fingerprint.
0:19:25 > 0:19:28If it had been, it would certainly have been used by the prosecution.
0:19:29 > 0:19:32It was withheld, the defence didn't know about it.
0:19:32 > 0:19:36It wasn't used, so it wasn't William Burtoft's.
0:19:36 > 0:19:37So far, none of the evidence
0:19:37 > 0:19:40supports William Burtoft's confession.
0:19:42 > 0:19:46Forensic scientist Liz Williams is conducting a reconstruction of the
0:19:46 > 0:19:49attack using fake blood.
0:19:49 > 0:19:50And not for the faint-hearted.
0:19:55 > 0:19:58In an apparent setback for the police, Burtoft's clothes
0:19:58 > 0:20:01had been tested and no traces of blood were discovered.
0:20:05 > 0:20:08The police maintained this was perfectly plausible
0:20:08 > 0:20:10despite such a frenzied attack.
0:20:12 > 0:20:13So, were they right?
0:20:16 > 0:20:18So, how did you get on?
0:20:18 > 0:20:21There's a body on the couch with severe head injuries.
0:20:21 > 0:20:24Is it possible, if the person who inflicted these injuries
0:20:24 > 0:20:27with a weapon of approximately this length,
0:20:27 > 0:20:29didn't have any blood on themselves?
0:20:29 > 0:20:33If it's not possible, surely this would rule Burtoft out?
0:20:33 > 0:20:39I have a block of wood and I have a blood-soaked sponge on top of that.
0:20:39 > 0:20:42So, from here, I didn't get anything close to that wall.
0:20:43 > 0:20:45And I didn't get any blood on me.
0:20:45 > 0:20:50So, then, I came around here and from here I ended up with these,
0:20:50 > 0:20:55what we call cessation cast off, on the rear wall here.
0:20:55 > 0:20:58I also got splashing on this curtain.
0:20:59 > 0:21:04The couch edge here is creating a void, but there's nothing on me.
0:21:04 > 0:21:07Did you say you had nothing on your suit at all?
0:21:07 > 0:21:10- No.- Performing the acts that you've done,
0:21:10 > 0:21:16it's entirely possible you could actually remain blood free
0:21:16 > 0:21:18as far as your clothing was concerned?
0:21:18 > 0:21:23Yep. And we've just demonstrated that from three different positions.
0:21:23 > 0:21:25You're rubber-stamping the possibility that blood
0:21:25 > 0:21:28- might not have got there at all. - Yep.- That's what you're saying.
0:21:28 > 0:21:30- Yep.- Thank you very much.- Thank you very much indeed
0:21:30 > 0:21:32- for all your efforts.- Not a problem.
0:21:32 > 0:21:35If I was defending William Burtoft today, I would still make
0:21:35 > 0:21:38the point to the jury that the absence of blood on his clothing
0:21:38 > 0:21:41is further material casting doubt on his guilt.
0:21:41 > 0:21:44It was a good point then and it's a good point now.
0:21:44 > 0:21:46What we've learnt from Liz's reconstruction
0:21:46 > 0:21:51is that the person who attacked Mrs Levin would not necessarily
0:21:51 > 0:21:55have blood on them, so we can't exclude William Burtoft
0:21:55 > 0:21:57as the attacker.
0:21:58 > 0:22:01Was Burtoft the type of person who could have committed this crime?
0:22:03 > 0:22:06Kate has come to Liverpool's famous docks where Burtoft once lived and
0:22:06 > 0:22:09worked, to meet naval historian John Winrow.
0:22:09 > 0:22:12- Kate.- Hi, I'm Kate, nice to meet you.
0:22:12 > 0:22:17He's researched Burtoft's maritime records, so what do they reveal?
0:22:17 > 0:22:20You can see here where it says his character - good.
0:22:20 > 0:22:22- Good, there, as well. - So quite a few goods.
0:22:22 > 0:22:28- Yep.- Unfortunately, in Navy terms if you were just good,
0:22:28 > 0:22:32- you weren't good. You were bad.- OK.
0:22:32 > 0:22:34That might explain a few things.
0:22:34 > 0:22:35Well, there's more to come.
0:22:35 > 0:22:40So, here you can see he's on the HMS Hogue.
0:22:40 > 0:22:42Unfortunately, while he's on the Hogue,
0:22:42 > 0:22:47he was in cells for three days for some misdemeanour.
0:22:47 > 0:22:50When he comes back to barracks,
0:22:50 > 0:22:55while he's there, he's sentenced to 88 days hard labour.
0:22:55 > 0:22:57Right, OK.
0:22:57 > 0:23:00Just over a year later, he's discharged.
0:23:00 > 0:23:03In 1910, he lost an eye.
0:23:03 > 0:23:06We don't know how that happened.
0:23:06 > 0:23:09It could have been disease, it could have been an injury.
0:23:09 > 0:23:13- We don't know.- Yeah.- And in the same year, he was bound over
0:23:13 > 0:23:16for stealing watches.
0:23:16 > 0:23:20Early on in the First World War, Burtoft joined the Merchant Navy.
0:23:21 > 0:23:23In the Merchant Navy at that time,
0:23:23 > 0:23:27they had a discharge book which was a bit like a passport.
0:23:27 > 0:23:30There was a photograph of William Burtoft.
0:23:30 > 0:23:31So, there he is.
0:23:33 > 0:23:38- Wow. Certainly seems like a character, doesn't he?- Yeah.
0:23:38 > 0:23:43- Yeah.- By 1923, he's become addicted to methylated spirits.
0:23:43 > 0:23:45Doesn't seem good, does it?
0:23:45 > 0:23:49- No.- Even if he's done, like, these crimes of stealing,
0:23:49 > 0:23:53nothing really relates to any form of violence, does it?
0:23:53 > 0:23:55No, it's all fairly petty.
0:23:55 > 0:23:59- Petty crimes, really.- Yeah.- A sign of poverty, I suppose, really.
0:23:59 > 0:24:03- Yeah.- The effect of the methylated spirits could bring on aggression.
0:24:03 > 0:24:08And around about the same time again he's doing six months for
0:24:08 > 0:24:11- housebreaking.- Stealing.- Yep.
0:24:14 > 0:24:15- GBH.- Quite shocked, really.
0:24:17 > 0:24:20Having listened to some of this I'm kind of having a change of heart
0:24:20 > 0:24:24about him, to be honest. I thought he might have been innocent.
0:24:24 > 0:24:29But maybe he did do it.
0:24:30 > 0:24:33Now living on the streets in Manchester,
0:24:33 > 0:24:35Burtoft was in and out of prison.
0:24:35 > 0:24:40One conviction for GBH saw him hit a woman during a burglary.
0:24:40 > 0:24:43This record provided police with the perfect suspect.
0:24:43 > 0:24:45But was he capable of murder?
0:24:46 > 0:24:49William Burtoft's trial opened at Manchester
0:24:49 > 0:24:51on November the 13th, 1933...
0:24:52 > 0:24:54..before Mr Justice Atkinson,
0:24:54 > 0:24:57presiding over his first murder case.
0:24:57 > 0:25:00The pivotal feature of William Burtoft's trial was of the alleged
0:25:00 > 0:25:04confession. I think, really, we need to focus on how it was dealt with.
0:25:04 > 0:25:07The arresting officer, Inspector Page,
0:25:07 > 0:25:10took the stand to confirm the police version of events,
0:25:10 > 0:25:15that Burtoft made the alleged confession voluntarily.
0:25:15 > 0:25:20What happened is that the defence took objection to the confession
0:25:20 > 0:25:23on the basis that it was involuntary.
0:25:23 > 0:25:25So, there was then, as there is today,
0:25:25 > 0:25:29a procedure where the argument takes place in the absence of the jury
0:25:29 > 0:25:30because it's a matter of law.
0:25:30 > 0:25:35And William Burtoft was called to give evidence along with the police
0:25:35 > 0:25:38officers. And when he gave evidence in the absence of the jury,
0:25:38 > 0:25:42he said that they subjected him to the third degree,
0:25:42 > 0:25:46that one of the officers went out, came back with a bottle of whiskey,
0:25:46 > 0:25:49allowed him about half a tumbler.
0:25:49 > 0:25:52And when he drank it, said, there'll be more of that, effectively,
0:25:52 > 0:25:56if you cooperate. And that the confession came about in those
0:25:56 > 0:26:00- circumstances.- He would not have been able to withstand any sort of
0:26:00 > 0:26:03- pressure.- No.- And if anybody needed the assistance of a solicitor,
0:26:03 > 0:26:05- it was William Burtoft. - Well, I have to say,
0:26:05 > 0:26:07really he was at the mercy of these police officers.
0:26:07 > 0:26:10They could have done anything they wanted to to get a confession.
0:26:10 > 0:26:13And when you look at the evidence they gave before the judge,
0:26:13 > 0:26:15my instinct is, that's exactly what they did.
0:26:15 > 0:26:17In the absence of the jury,
0:26:17 > 0:26:21the judge made a determination that he believed the police.
0:26:22 > 0:26:25The judge ruled that the confession was voluntary
0:26:25 > 0:26:28and could therefore be heard by the jury.
0:26:28 > 0:26:32But Burtoft's defence counsel scored a major own goal.
0:26:32 > 0:26:36Firstly, it's astonishing that William Burtoft
0:26:36 > 0:26:41wasn't called to explain how the confession came about.
0:26:41 > 0:26:44And secondly, that it's beyond belief, in my view,
0:26:44 > 0:26:49that a man accused of murder should not be asked by his own barrister,
0:26:49 > 0:26:51do you want to give evidence?
0:26:51 > 0:26:54So the jury had one half of the equation.
0:26:54 > 0:26:56They had an opportunity of hearing the other half,
0:26:56 > 0:27:01but the jury never heard the most crucial part of this.
0:27:01 > 0:27:04Imagine if one of us went before the Court of Appeal,
0:27:04 > 0:27:06having failed to call our client in a murder case,
0:27:06 > 0:27:09and when asked why he didn't give evidence, we were to say, "Well,
0:27:09 > 0:27:11"actually, I'm not sure, I never asked him.
0:27:11 > 0:27:15- "Or advised him."- Well, I think it's bordering on negligent.
0:27:16 > 0:27:19It wasn't just the defence counsel that were at fault.
0:27:19 > 0:27:22The barristers have uncovered major errors
0:27:22 > 0:27:24in Judge Atkinson's summing up.
0:27:24 > 0:27:26In relation to the three police officers,
0:27:26 > 0:27:30the judge commented that these were witnesses who had made their mark in
0:27:30 > 0:27:31- the force.- Yes.
0:27:31 > 0:27:34So he was effectively praising these officers.
0:27:34 > 0:27:38He shouldn't have been praising them in the case of a hotly-disputed
0:27:38 > 0:27:40confession such as this.
0:27:40 > 0:27:44He said that, so far as he was concerned,
0:27:44 > 0:27:47the statement was a perfectly voluntary statement
0:27:47 > 0:27:51made by the prisoner in answer to a perfectly proper question.
0:27:51 > 0:27:54- So...- The jury were ultimately told to convict in this case.
0:27:54 > 0:27:58Well, yeah. That's a highly deficient summing up in an even more
0:27:58 > 0:28:00deficient trial, in my view.
0:28:03 > 0:28:07Burtoft's defective trial has bolstered Jeremy's case,
0:28:07 > 0:28:10but he still needs new evidence or legal angle to persuade the judge
0:28:10 > 0:28:14a miscarriage of justice has taken place.
0:28:14 > 0:28:17This case is all about that confession.
0:28:17 > 0:28:21What we really need to do is to focus on what this man
0:28:21 > 0:28:23is supposed to have said,
0:28:23 > 0:28:25get into the detail,
0:28:25 > 0:28:28that's what will take us in the right direction.
0:28:29 > 0:28:32The barristers have asked investigative psychologist
0:28:32 > 0:28:35Donna Youngs to analyse Burtoft's case.
0:28:36 > 0:28:38Hi, Donna.
0:28:38 > 0:28:39Nice to see you again.
0:28:40 > 0:28:44So, was his contested confession genuine or false?
0:28:44 > 0:28:45This statement, to me,
0:28:45 > 0:28:49does not represent the heartfelt unburdening of a guilty man.
0:28:49 > 0:28:51So not a genuine confession?
0:28:51 > 0:28:52No, for a number of reasons.
0:28:52 > 0:28:57I mean, psychologically, it doesn't have the emotional gravitas
0:28:57 > 0:28:59that we would expect from a confession.
0:28:59 > 0:29:03When somebody's confessing, it's a very intense emotional experience
0:29:03 > 0:29:08for them. Therefore you expect that confession to be lengthy,
0:29:08 > 0:29:12to be emotional, and illogically ordered,
0:29:12 > 0:29:14to have a natural human flow of emotion...
0:29:14 > 0:29:16So, like a stream of consciousness.
0:29:16 > 0:29:20- Yeah.- Yeah.- Whereas this is much more functional,
0:29:20 > 0:29:23and just quite simply, it's very short.
0:29:24 > 0:29:28We're dealing with police officers who appear to be fuelling a false
0:29:28 > 0:29:32confession from a vulnerable man,
0:29:32 > 0:29:34knowing that that confession might well not be true.
0:29:34 > 0:29:36I mean, that's what we seem to be dealing with.
0:29:36 > 0:29:41I think this is police officers wanting to follow the appropriate
0:29:41 > 0:29:45procedural steps to get the evidence that they need to convict a man
0:29:45 > 0:29:48that they believe is guilty.
0:29:48 > 0:29:52They've tried and convicted this man already in their heads.
0:29:53 > 0:29:55Donna has added further weight to Jeremy's suspicion
0:29:55 > 0:29:58that the confession was not genuine.
0:29:58 > 0:30:01But this wasn't Burtoft's only confession.
0:30:01 > 0:30:04After his conviction, faced with the gallows,
0:30:04 > 0:30:08he wrote a letter to the Home Secretary, petitioning for his life.
0:30:08 > 0:30:13What I want to do is turn to the petition which, I think you agree,
0:30:13 > 0:30:17is also a confession by Mr Burtoft.
0:30:17 > 0:30:19Because he said, "I wish to state,
0:30:19 > 0:30:26"I am the man who committed the crime but not with the intention of doing murder." So he's saying,
0:30:26 > 0:30:31I did inflict the injuries which caused the death of this woman.
0:30:31 > 0:30:33- Is he not?- He is, yeah.
0:30:33 > 0:30:36How would you describe that confession
0:30:36 > 0:30:38in terms of whether it makes sense
0:30:38 > 0:30:41and it has the hallmarks of what you would be looking for?
0:30:41 > 0:30:43Much, much more believable.
0:30:43 > 0:30:46His version of events, it's very simple, very straightforward.
0:30:46 > 0:30:49- Yes.- Very plausible.
0:30:49 > 0:30:52He simply was taken by surprise and he struck out.
0:30:52 > 0:30:56Right. In this document, he provides a motive of what he was doing there.
0:30:56 > 0:30:59- Yeah.- He says he went to the door,
0:30:59 > 0:31:04the temptation came over me with the express purpose of seeing if I could
0:31:04 > 0:31:09get anything, I was surprised at being confronted with the old lady.
0:31:09 > 0:31:12That's how the struggle started.
0:31:12 > 0:31:14He's almost saying, "Look, I'm human."
0:31:14 > 0:31:18It's not the externally applied motivation that we see
0:31:18 > 0:31:21in the initial, alleged confession, where
0:31:21 > 0:31:23owing to drinking methylated spirit...
0:31:23 > 0:31:26He's talking about his own temptation.
0:31:26 > 0:31:29He's saying, I'm a human being, I'm not a mastermind criminal.
0:31:29 > 0:31:32It seems to be, what you're saying, Donna, is statement number one,
0:31:32 > 0:31:35the confession, not plausible.
0:31:35 > 0:31:38Statement number two, very plausible,
0:31:38 > 0:31:40would you put it as highly as that, or not?
0:31:40 > 0:31:42I think so, yes.
0:31:42 > 0:31:43But notwithstanding that,
0:31:43 > 0:31:47do you accept the possibility that the petition letter might have been
0:31:47 > 0:31:51written by an innocent man in the vain hope that he could escape
0:31:51 > 0:31:54the death penalty? That remains a possibility?
0:31:54 > 0:31:56He hasn't done a very good job of it,
0:31:56 > 0:31:58if that's what he's trying to do.
0:31:58 > 0:32:02Given the analysis that you've done of these two documents,
0:32:02 > 0:32:05are you able to express an opinion as to whether you think
0:32:05 > 0:32:08William Burtoft attacked Mrs Levin, or not?
0:32:08 > 0:32:12- I do believe he attacked. - Right.- I believe he was there.
0:32:12 > 0:32:16And I believe he responded in the way that he has described.
0:32:16 > 0:32:20- In the petition.- In his December petition, yeah.
0:32:20 > 0:32:24Which suggests that he lost his control but, what,
0:32:24 > 0:32:25didn't intend to kill her?
0:32:25 > 0:32:27I don't think he intended to kill her.
0:32:27 > 0:32:29It's a panicked response.
0:32:29 > 0:32:32Right. Right, well, that's very, very helpful.
0:32:34 > 0:32:38So, does the second apparent confession hold any legal weight?
0:32:38 > 0:32:43Has it changed Jeremy and Sasha's view of Burtoft's conviction?
0:32:43 > 0:32:48I'm fortified in my opinion that this admission by William
0:32:48 > 0:32:50was not a true bill.
0:32:50 > 0:32:56And Donna Youngs has reinforced the concern that William Burtoft
0:32:56 > 0:32:59was wrongly convicted on the strength
0:32:59 > 0:33:01of highly fallible evidence.
0:33:02 > 0:33:06I'm very troubled by the contribution that Donna has made
0:33:06 > 0:33:12because she has said in no uncertain terms that the first confession
0:33:12 > 0:33:16is unreliable. And if that had been ruled inadmissible,
0:33:16 > 0:33:18that would have been the end of the case.
0:33:18 > 0:33:21Donna took the view that the petition letter
0:33:21 > 0:33:23has more credibility,
0:33:23 > 0:33:26but I don't agree with Donna on that.
0:33:26 > 0:33:29I don't think that petition letter can possibly influence
0:33:29 > 0:33:31the question of William Burtoft's conviction is unsafe.
0:33:31 > 0:33:35It's unsafe because that confession is worthless, and that's what this
0:33:35 > 0:33:37investigation is all about.
0:33:41 > 0:33:45With judgment day fast approaching, Kate wants to pay her respects
0:33:45 > 0:33:47to William Burtoft.
0:33:47 > 0:33:48Knowing about it now,
0:33:48 > 0:33:51it'll be nice to finally get a little bit of justice for him.
0:33:51 > 0:33:57He was a down-and-out, so he might not have meant anything to anybody.
0:33:58 > 0:34:02It'll be nice. And have a little peace of mind myself.
0:34:03 > 0:34:06In the early '90s, Burtoft's body was
0:34:06 > 0:34:08exhumed from Strangeways Prison
0:34:08 > 0:34:11and reburied along with other executed prisoners
0:34:11 > 0:34:12here at Blakely Cemetery.
0:34:13 > 0:34:16So this is where you're buried.
0:34:16 > 0:34:18William, I've read your case.
0:34:18 > 0:34:20I do believe that you're innocent.
0:34:20 > 0:34:25So, hopefully, we might be able to right a wrong, and clear your name.
0:34:32 > 0:34:37Rest in peace. See you later, William.
0:34:43 > 0:34:48The mistakes made at Burtoft's trial need not have led to his death.
0:34:48 > 0:34:53An appeal against his conviction was heard on the 4th of December 1933.
0:34:53 > 0:34:55Hi, Jeremy, how are you doing?
0:34:55 > 0:34:58Once again, the judicial system let him down.
0:34:59 > 0:35:05The final phase of this tragic case is William Burtoft's appeal.
0:35:05 > 0:35:08And I don't believe, having looked at the appeal judgment,
0:35:08 > 0:35:14that the Court of Appeal did anything to remedy the unfairness
0:35:14 > 0:35:17which had characterised his trial.
0:35:17 > 0:35:20This is the Court of Appeal, the Lord Chief Justice speaking,
0:35:20 > 0:35:22"Whatever doubt we, or some of us,
0:35:22 > 0:35:26"may entertain as to the original history of the confession,
0:35:26 > 0:35:28"it's not possible to interfere."
0:35:28 > 0:35:32So they clearly harboured serious reservations about whether the judge
0:35:32 > 0:35:35should have let that confession go before the jury, but they weren't
0:35:35 > 0:35:37prepared to do anything about it.
0:35:37 > 0:35:41This is an incredibly strong argument here that he was victim
0:35:41 > 0:35:43of a miscarriage of justice.
0:35:43 > 0:35:47Jeremy believes he has a strong case to put before the judge.
0:35:47 > 0:35:50But could the petition letter, Burtoft's second confession,
0:35:50 > 0:35:51get in the way?
0:35:51 > 0:35:56I believe that he did this as a last desperate attempt
0:35:56 > 0:35:59to avoid being hanged.
0:35:59 > 0:36:05And that it would be unfair for any court in the modern world
0:36:05 > 0:36:09to take that petition letter into account in deciding
0:36:09 > 0:36:13whether William Burtoft's conviction was indeed, unsafe.
0:36:13 > 0:36:15We start at first principles.
0:36:15 > 0:36:18Was there enough evidence to charge William Burtoft?
0:36:18 > 0:36:21Well, if you take the confession out of the equation,
0:36:21 > 0:36:23the answer would be no.
0:36:23 > 0:36:26There couldn't be a trial, there wouldn't be a conviction,
0:36:26 > 0:36:28there wouldn't have been an execution.
0:36:28 > 0:36:33So anything that flows as a result of that tainted confession
0:36:33 > 0:36:36cannot be fairly admitted. And on that basis,
0:36:36 > 0:36:41an attempt to have the death penalty commuted to life imprisonment
0:36:41 > 0:36:42wouldn't even arise.
0:36:45 > 0:36:46Judgment day has arrived.
0:36:46 > 0:36:49The barristers will soon present their legal findings
0:36:49 > 0:36:52before his Honour, Judge David Radford.
0:36:52 > 0:36:55But has Jeremy found enough information to persuade him
0:36:55 > 0:36:58that William Burtoft's conviction was unsafe?
0:36:59 > 0:37:03I'm very hopeful of a positive outcome in William Burtoft's case.
0:37:03 > 0:37:08I believe that the case is a prime example of how people
0:37:08 > 0:37:12at the very lower echelons of society back then
0:37:12 > 0:37:17were potential victims of miscarriage of justice.
0:37:17 > 0:37:21Today, Kate will discover if her relative was really the murderer
0:37:21 > 0:37:22he was made out to be.
0:37:22 > 0:37:25- Hello, Kate. How are you?- I'm good, thank you.
0:37:25 > 0:37:27- Nice to see you again.- And you, too, Sasha.
0:37:27 > 0:37:30OK, we're here today for the judge's hearing.
0:37:31 > 0:37:34- How are you feeling?- Excited. - Really? That's good.
0:37:34 > 0:37:36- OK, would you like to follow me? - Yes.- Thank you.- After you.
0:37:39 > 0:37:43Judge Radford has many years experience at the criminal bar.
0:37:43 > 0:37:46He's tried many murder cases, and sat in the Court of Appeal.
0:37:48 > 0:37:51He'll be treating this matter as he would any other case.
0:37:54 > 0:37:57Mr Dein, Miss Wass.
0:37:57 > 0:37:59We're here this afternoon, with your assistance,
0:37:59 > 0:38:05for me to re-examine whether the conviction that Mr William Burtoft
0:38:05 > 0:38:11for murder should now be regarded as an unsafe verdict.
0:38:12 > 0:38:14Mr Dein, would you like to make submissions first?
0:38:14 > 0:38:16Yes, please. Thank you, your honour.
0:38:16 > 0:38:22The case against Mr Burtoft depended upon 11 lines of confession.
0:38:22 > 0:38:26Donna Youngs, a modern-day criminal psychologist,
0:38:26 > 0:38:29is firmly of the view that, quote,
0:38:29 > 0:38:33"The confession entered into is not representative
0:38:33 > 0:38:38"of a coherent, truthful statement, and appears to have been made
0:38:38 > 0:38:43"under duress or to be in someone else's words".
0:38:43 > 0:38:44Without that evidence,
0:38:44 > 0:38:49there was no evidence upon which he could have been convicted,
0:38:49 > 0:38:51nor, of course, hanged.
0:38:51 > 0:38:56The second point I make relates to the learned trial judge's
0:38:56 > 0:39:01summing up. The judge effectively informed the jury that in his view
0:39:01 > 0:39:04the confession was a perfectly proper,
0:39:04 > 0:39:08and in those circumstances, by inference, truthful confession,
0:39:08 > 0:39:12and that the jury were left with no choice, as a consequence,
0:39:12 > 0:39:16but to accept the evidence to convict Mr Burtoft of murder.
0:39:17 > 0:39:22And I submit with some force that Mr Burtoft could well have been
0:39:22 > 0:39:26unjustly hanged for the murder of Frances Levin.
0:39:26 > 0:39:28Thank you. Yes, Miss Wass.
0:39:28 > 0:39:29You wish to respond.
0:39:30 > 0:39:34Sasha now has the opportunity to validate Burtoft's conviction,
0:39:34 > 0:39:37or support Jeremy's view that he was wrongly hanged.
0:39:39 > 0:39:41Judged by the current day's standards,
0:39:41 > 0:39:46had such a confession been in the hands of the police,
0:39:46 > 0:39:52it would undoubtedly have been excluded by the trial judge.
0:39:52 > 0:39:57And in the context of this case, there was no other evidence
0:39:57 > 0:39:59against William Burtoft,
0:39:59 > 0:40:05so taking into consideration the points that Mr Dein has raised,
0:40:05 > 0:40:11we entirely support his submissions, that this is an unsafe conviction.
0:40:11 > 0:40:15And we do not seek to uphold it.
0:40:15 > 0:40:16Thank you.
0:40:17 > 0:40:22Well, I must, myself, reflect on this matter, make my own judgment.
0:40:22 > 0:40:26Perhaps you'll be kind enough to give me time to do that properly.
0:40:26 > 0:40:27Certainly.
0:40:32 > 0:40:35As the judge said, although Jeremy and I both agree,
0:40:35 > 0:40:39that this was not a safe conviction, it's not our decision.
0:40:39 > 0:40:40It's the judge's decision.
0:40:40 > 0:40:45So he's got to approve it and he's got to really look at our reasoning
0:40:45 > 0:40:47and satisfy himself that he's happy with it.
0:40:47 > 0:40:49It's not just a question of rubber-stamping
0:40:49 > 0:40:50what we've asked him to do.
0:40:50 > 0:40:53He's got to come to his own conclusions.
0:40:53 > 0:40:56All right. So we just have to wait until he's prepared his judgment.
0:40:56 > 0:40:58- He'll call us in.- Yep.
0:40:58 > 0:40:59How do you think it went?
0:40:59 > 0:41:03I really think the judge will be on our side.
0:41:03 > 0:41:05Good. Well, it's good that you're optimistic.
0:41:05 > 0:41:07- Not long to wait now.- Yep.
0:41:08 > 0:41:12Will Judge Radford agree with the barristers, or follow suit with the
0:41:12 > 0:41:15original trial judge and Lord Chief Justice at the appeal?
0:41:17 > 0:41:20He's ready to deliver his verdict.
0:41:20 > 0:41:24As the Lord Chief Justice said in the course of the judgment
0:41:24 > 0:41:31in the Court of Appeal, the evidence against Mr Burtoft rested,
0:41:31 > 0:41:36apart from his confession, on little or no other basis.
0:41:37 > 0:41:39As to the confession,
0:41:39 > 0:41:44it was initially for the trial judge to determine whether the prosecution
0:41:44 > 0:41:47had satisfied him, beyond a reasonable doubt,
0:41:47 > 0:41:50that it was a voluntary confession.
0:41:51 > 0:41:55If, but only if, the judge so determined,
0:41:55 > 0:41:58the issue for the jury was not whether it was voluntary,
0:41:58 > 0:42:01but whether the confession was a true confession.
0:42:03 > 0:42:04The confession was,
0:42:04 > 0:42:08as the Lord Chief Justice had said in the course of argument,
0:42:08 > 0:42:12a remarkable, and I quote the Lord Chief Justice's words,
0:42:12 > 0:42:16"It seems to be written straight on without a pause,
0:42:16 > 0:42:19"and with a running pen".
0:42:19 > 0:42:22It seems clear to me that the circumstances
0:42:22 > 0:42:26in which this confession was said to be made
0:42:26 > 0:42:29were obscure and difficult to justify
0:42:29 > 0:42:34as being made in circumstances where the confession
0:42:34 > 0:42:37was voluntary. My conclusion, therefore,
0:42:37 > 0:42:41is that this conviction was not safe,
0:42:41 > 0:42:46based on the evidence that had been allowed to be before the jury.
0:42:49 > 0:42:50I shall rise.
0:42:58 > 0:42:59Thank you both so much.
0:42:59 > 0:43:02- I hope you're pleased with that outcome.- I am, yeah.
0:43:02 > 0:43:05- All right.- Feel a little bit emotional, now.
0:43:05 > 0:43:07We understand that. Yeah, of course.
0:43:07 > 0:43:10I'll be telling everybody that me great, great uncle was innocent.
0:43:10 > 0:43:12Yay! Yeah, yeah.
0:43:12 > 0:43:15So, it's nice, yeah. Made up.