0:00:02 > 0:00:04In 2014 there were over half a million criminal
0:00:04 > 0:00:06prosecutions in England and Wales.
0:00:06 > 0:00:08Each one was prosecuted, not by the police,
0:00:08 > 0:00:12but by the lawyers of the Crown Prosecution Service.
0:00:12 > 0:00:17My job is about applying the law to other people's lives,
0:00:17 > 0:00:19and hopefully for the public good.
0:00:20 > 0:00:23The defendant is found locked inside the house
0:00:23 > 0:00:26with his mother dead downstairs.
0:00:26 > 0:00:30In every serious criminal case, the Crown Prosecution Service
0:00:30 > 0:00:34must decide who to charge and what to charge them with.
0:00:34 > 0:00:38I think that this will come down to, I suppose, is he bad or is he mad?
0:00:38 > 0:00:42Sometimes the difficult decisions are unpopular decisions,
0:00:42 > 0:00:44but they are the right decisions.
0:00:44 > 0:00:49It's their job to build the case and battle to secure a conviction.
0:00:49 > 0:00:52All the defence have to do is just pick at things.
0:00:52 > 0:00:53They just go like that,
0:00:53 > 0:00:55and say "Well, you're not right about that."
0:00:55 > 0:00:59Now, for the very first time, the Crown Prosecution Service has let
0:00:59 > 0:01:04cameras in to film this unseen world between the police and the courts.
0:01:04 > 0:01:06These are real people. They're real people's lives
0:01:06 > 0:01:08and real emotions involved.
0:01:08 > 0:01:11We may have our suspicions, but if the evidence isn't there,
0:01:11 > 0:01:12the evidence isn't there.
0:01:12 > 0:01:15For them it's evidence.
0:01:15 > 0:01:17It's my life.
0:01:17 > 0:01:20This programme contains some strong language.
0:01:20 > 0:01:24This programme contains some scenes which some viewers may find upsetting
0:01:24 > 0:01:27Cheshire, the Alderley Edge Bypass.
0:01:28 > 0:01:32September the 16th 2013, 8.15am.
0:01:34 > 0:01:36A mother taking her children to school
0:01:36 > 0:01:40is involved in a collision that leads to a road traffic fatality.
0:01:41 > 0:01:45Mr Maan, the driver of a red Porsche, is arrested and bailed.
0:01:47 > 0:01:52In February 2014, after a six month investigation, the police file
0:01:52 > 0:01:54reaches the Crown Prosecution Service.
0:01:57 > 0:02:00Mersey Cheshire is one of 13 areas of the CPS.
0:02:01 > 0:02:03A staff of 220 are responsible for prosecuting
0:02:03 > 0:02:06over 56,000 cases every year.
0:02:08 > 0:02:10For you, Helen.
0:02:10 > 0:02:12Thank you.
0:02:12 > 0:02:15The Maan case lands on the desk of Gary Simpson.
0:02:15 > 0:02:17He must review the evidence
0:02:17 > 0:02:20and decide whether Mr Maan should be prosecuted.
0:02:20 > 0:02:25Mr Maan was driving his Porsche motor vehicle, and he left his lane,
0:02:25 > 0:02:27travelled into the opposite carriageway,
0:02:27 > 0:02:30where he came into collision with a Ford Focus vehicle.
0:02:30 > 0:02:34In effect, Mr Maan has travelled in this direction,
0:02:34 > 0:02:36and rather than continue around the bend,
0:02:36 > 0:02:41has travelled into the path of Mrs Morrissey and her Ford Focus.
0:02:41 > 0:02:45You'll see the impact is clearly head on.
0:02:45 > 0:02:49The rear seat passenger was her son, Flynn Morrissey.
0:02:49 > 0:02:52He sustained fatal injuries and subsequently died.
0:02:53 > 0:02:57A young life taken away on the way to school.
0:02:58 > 0:03:01Part of the evidence is the video interview the police conducted
0:03:01 > 0:03:04with Flynn Morrissey's mother, Nicky,
0:03:04 > 0:03:07ten days after her 11-year-old son's death.
0:03:08 > 0:03:12I can't imagine how I'm going to go on...
0:03:15 > 0:03:17..with life...
0:03:19 > 0:03:24..but I realise I do have a responsibility still.
0:03:24 > 0:03:28I can't just go off and kill myself...
0:03:28 > 0:03:30which I thought I would do.
0:03:35 > 0:03:38Cos I just want to be with Flynn.
0:03:39 > 0:03:41All driving fatality cases must be
0:03:41 > 0:03:45overseen by a Deputy Chief Crown Prosecutor.
0:03:45 > 0:03:48In the Mersey Cheshire region that is Alison Mutch.
0:03:48 > 0:03:51I think that the road traffic cases are probably the
0:03:51 > 0:03:54most difficult cases we deal with.
0:03:54 > 0:03:55They're always quite emotive,
0:03:55 > 0:03:59and sometimes they're so finely balanced.
0:03:59 > 0:04:02They are ones that you have to spend a lot of time thinking about
0:04:02 > 0:04:05and just weighing up all of the evidence.
0:04:05 > 0:04:08Mr Maan explained in a lengthy interview that he was
0:04:08 > 0:04:10familiar with the use of the car.
0:04:10 > 0:04:12He was travelling to work at the time.
0:04:12 > 0:04:15He talked about the road surface being wet
0:04:15 > 0:04:17and there being heavy rain.
0:04:17 > 0:04:20He says that as he was travelling along the road,
0:04:20 > 0:04:21he approached the bend,
0:04:21 > 0:04:24and for no apparent reason, as far as he could see,
0:04:24 > 0:04:28his vehicle lost control and he travelled into the carriageway.
0:04:28 > 0:04:32Mr Maan had various electronic devices in his car.
0:04:32 > 0:04:34They were all examined by the police
0:04:34 > 0:04:38and there is no evidence to show that he was using his phone or any
0:04:38 > 0:04:42other electronic device at the time he was travelling along the road.
0:04:42 > 0:04:45Clearly for some reason he has lost control of his vehicle
0:04:45 > 0:04:48when nobody else on that stretch of road did.
0:04:52 > 0:04:55We've got lots of different charges we can consider.
0:04:55 > 0:04:56Death by dangerous driving
0:04:56 > 0:05:00and death by careless driving are particularly relevant in this case.
0:05:02 > 0:05:05Now, for death by dangerous we have to show that the driving fell
0:05:05 > 0:05:09far below the standard of an ordinary driver.
0:05:09 > 0:05:12For death by careless we have to show it fell below.
0:05:12 > 0:05:16So it's that word "far" that's the difference between the two.
0:05:16 > 0:05:19Sometimes it's very easy - there's alcohol involved,
0:05:19 > 0:05:22somebody is on their mobile telephone,
0:05:22 > 0:05:24they're driving at very high speeds,
0:05:24 > 0:05:27and it clearly is dangerous.
0:05:27 > 0:05:28But other cases,
0:05:28 > 0:05:33whilst the consequences of the driving are absolutely catastrophic,
0:05:33 > 0:05:37the actual piece of driving falls below, but doesn't fall far below,
0:05:37 > 0:05:39and that's quite a significant change,
0:05:39 > 0:05:42because the maximum sentence is different.
0:05:42 > 0:05:45But also, if we get it wrong we're not doing the right thing
0:05:45 > 0:05:49for the family of the deceased.
0:05:52 > 0:05:56Right, shoes are in the kitchen. Go on.
0:05:56 > 0:06:00Claire Lindley has been a barrister in the CPS for over 25 years.
0:06:00 > 0:06:02Bye-bye, darling. Have a good day.
0:06:02 > 0:06:05She is now the Chief Crown Prosecutor of Mersey Cheshire.
0:06:05 > 0:06:09I don't mind the commute because it's quite good thinking time.
0:06:09 > 0:06:12Apart from the traffic, which is horrendous some days,
0:06:12 > 0:06:15and of course I have to kind of land at work
0:06:15 > 0:06:18looking like I'm in control,
0:06:18 > 0:06:20when actually I just sometimes think
0:06:20 > 0:06:24I feel like swearing cos I've been stuck on the M6 for half an hour.
0:06:27 > 0:06:31There's a lot of decisions to take in every single case.
0:06:31 > 0:06:34There's the decision whether to charge, you've to decide what
0:06:34 > 0:06:38to charge them with, which sounds straightforward and isn't.
0:06:39 > 0:06:42And actually, making decisions is quite a stressful thing,
0:06:42 > 0:06:46because the decisions you are making...
0:06:48 > 0:06:50..they affect people's lives.
0:06:50 > 0:06:52They might make a difference as to
0:06:52 > 0:06:55whether somebody goes to prison or not,
0:06:55 > 0:06:58whether someone is convicted or acquitted,
0:06:58 > 0:07:01whether a victim feels that justice has been done.
0:07:02 > 0:07:05And that, I think, is quite stressful.
0:07:05 > 0:07:07You've to be really resilient.
0:07:07 > 0:07:11You can get so emotionally involved in cases that some cases
0:07:11 > 0:07:15are kind of indelibly marked on your heart, to be honest.
0:07:19 > 0:07:23Gary is currently responsible for 90 different ongoing cases.
0:07:23 > 0:07:26Before he comes to a charging decision in the Maan case,
0:07:26 > 0:07:29he will have to review the transcript of Mr Maan's
0:07:29 > 0:07:33police interview, as well as the statements of over 20 witnesses
0:07:33 > 0:07:36and the report of the police collision expert.
0:07:37 > 0:07:40In a driving fatality case, the decision is expected to take
0:07:40 > 0:07:41about eight working hours,
0:07:41 > 0:07:45but some charging decisions take much longer.
0:07:46 > 0:07:50Maria Corr is a lawyer in the Complex Casework Unit.
0:07:50 > 0:07:53She's been involved in an ongoing police case for the last six months.
0:07:53 > 0:07:56It concerns an organized criminal gang who
0:07:56 > 0:07:58specialise in blowing up cash machines.
0:07:58 > 0:08:05This is a DVD compilation concerning the different attacks on the banks.
0:08:05 > 0:08:06It shows just what they do
0:08:06 > 0:08:09and it shows their level of prof...
0:08:09 > 0:08:11Well, their level of organization.
0:08:13 > 0:08:16That's Barclays in Loughborough.
0:08:16 > 0:08:19You can see just exactly how he's dressed,
0:08:19 > 0:08:22that you just wouldn't get any identification here.
0:08:22 > 0:08:26And what we'll see then is the second offender coming across here.
0:08:27 > 0:08:30Now see, he's coming there.
0:08:30 > 0:08:33And what he's got in there are the oxyacetylene gas canisters
0:08:33 > 0:08:38and that gas has to be pumped into the ATM machine.
0:08:38 > 0:08:42You then need to detonate the gas, the gas build up.
0:08:49 > 0:08:53The alarm will be going now. They know they've got minutes to
0:08:53 > 0:08:55get in to the bank to get the money.
0:08:55 > 0:08:58Now see the rest of the gang coming?
0:08:58 > 0:09:02They are armed with, you can see, big crow bars, angle grinders,
0:09:02 > 0:09:04and they need to get into the bank.
0:09:04 > 0:09:06Now, this is within seconds.
0:09:08 > 0:09:11See those cassettes? They're the cash inside the machine.
0:09:12 > 0:09:16But on different events, we've got different levels of CCTV.
0:09:18 > 0:09:22What we say on all the 28 attacks, this is what they attempted to do.
0:09:25 > 0:09:27Not successful, probably, in half of them.
0:09:27 > 0:09:28But the half they got away with,
0:09:28 > 0:09:32we're talking probably over half a million pounds worth of cash.
0:09:32 > 0:09:34But the difficulty in this case is, you can see,
0:09:34 > 0:09:37although we have 28 sets of CCTV,
0:09:37 > 0:09:42there is no way to identify anybody on that CCTV footage.
0:09:42 > 0:09:46What they'll say is, "It wasn't me who did that."
0:09:46 > 0:09:49Then we'll have to show is, "Yes, it was you."
0:09:55 > 0:09:58In the Maan case, Gary has made his decision.
0:09:58 > 0:10:02Sometimes I think members of the public think that we just
0:10:02 > 0:10:04make decisions off the top of our head.
0:10:04 > 0:10:07Well, it's actually a lot more structured than that.
0:10:07 > 0:10:12So what we have is the code, which sets out a test
0:10:12 > 0:10:16and the test has two limbs to it.
0:10:16 > 0:10:18And what we must do is firstly decide
0:10:18 > 0:10:21if there is enough evidence to prosecute somebody.
0:10:21 > 0:10:26It's not the same test that the jury then goes on to use
0:10:26 > 0:10:30because the jury has got to decide beyond reasonable doubt
0:10:30 > 0:10:32that the defendant is guilty.
0:10:32 > 0:10:37So we are trying to work out whether it's realistically possible
0:10:37 > 0:10:42that a jury will decide beyond reasonable doubt that he is guilty.
0:10:42 > 0:10:46And if so, we must decide whether it's in the public interest
0:10:46 > 0:10:50to prosecute, and if so, what shall we charge him with?
0:10:50 > 0:10:52Gary plans to charge Mr Maan
0:10:52 > 0:10:56with the lesser offence of causing death by careless driving.
0:10:56 > 0:11:00The complexity of driving fatality cases means such decisions
0:11:00 > 0:11:04have to be approved by at least the Deputy Chief Crown Prosecutor.
0:11:04 > 0:11:08Alison is meeting Geoff Fryar, head of the Crown Court Unit,
0:11:08 > 0:11:11to finalise Gary's decision.
0:11:11 > 0:11:12This is on that bypass,
0:11:12 > 0:11:17and it's single carriageway in either direction.
0:11:17 > 0:11:18The suspect is in car.
0:11:18 > 0:11:20No suggestion of going in excess speed.
0:11:20 > 0:11:22It's not a great day weather-wise.
0:11:22 > 0:11:25Very wet, etc, but nobody else seems to be having problems with
0:11:25 > 0:11:27the road conditions as such.
0:11:29 > 0:11:34And the road comes to this bend, he's just carried on
0:11:34 > 0:11:37and hit oncoming car.
0:11:37 > 0:11:39No mechanical failure?
0:11:39 > 0:11:41No mechanical failure.
0:11:41 > 0:11:43He's not on his phone,
0:11:43 > 0:11:45there's no evidence of alcohol.
0:11:45 > 0:11:48It's just quite strange.
0:11:48 > 0:11:50I mean, he says in interview the car gave way
0:11:50 > 0:11:54and he doesn't know what happened and he's sorry.
0:11:54 > 0:11:57But there's nothing to suggest anything evidential.
0:11:57 > 0:12:00I mean, Gary thinks it's death by careless,
0:12:00 > 0:12:02and I think that's probably the right charge.
0:12:02 > 0:12:04Yeah. I think that's right. That was going through my mind,
0:12:04 > 0:12:06it was careless rather than dangerous
0:12:06 > 0:12:09if he's just left the road for a short period,
0:12:09 > 0:12:10albeit tragic consequences.
0:12:10 > 0:12:14But we would struggle to prove the driving was far below.
0:12:16 > 0:12:18You have to look at the type of driving.
0:12:18 > 0:12:22And it's really important that we look at the evidence.
0:12:23 > 0:12:25But we can't charge death by dangerous
0:12:25 > 0:12:28if there isn't enough evidence to charge it,
0:12:28 > 0:12:30because that would just be wrong.
0:12:31 > 0:12:34Mr Maan will now be charged.
0:12:34 > 0:12:36The prosecution evidence will be sent to his defence team
0:12:36 > 0:12:40and they will be given time to perform their own investigations.
0:12:42 > 0:12:46The trial is unlikely to take place for at least another nine months.
0:12:48 > 0:12:54To think about what happened all day, every day, would just be hell.
0:12:55 > 0:12:58Flynn was 11.
0:12:58 > 0:13:01It's a big difference to my commitment.
0:13:01 > 0:13:07One day, you're on the school run and then everything changes.
0:13:08 > 0:13:14And I found while I was looking into how you make typewriters work
0:13:14 > 0:13:17and what you do to clean them,
0:13:17 > 0:13:23I wasn't dwelling on feelings that I didn't want.
0:13:23 > 0:13:27And it's a good, you know, distraction.
0:13:28 > 0:13:32There's all numbers that are just appearing as I'm cleaning.
0:13:33 > 0:13:34All coming back to life.
0:13:36 > 0:13:39That's Flynn's trophy that he won.
0:13:39 > 0:13:45He had the cool role of playing Mr Toad of Toad Hall.
0:13:45 > 0:13:48He came home and put that soldier guy in it.
0:13:48 > 0:13:51So I haven't got the heart to take it out
0:13:51 > 0:13:54and the school have said that I can keep the trophy.
0:13:58 > 0:14:01I was so proud.
0:14:01 > 0:14:04Ah, such a good day.
0:14:09 > 0:14:13The ATM burglaries have generated thousands of pieces of evidence.
0:14:14 > 0:14:17The most crucial come from burglary number 28
0:14:17 > 0:14:19at the Barclays in Warrington.
0:14:21 > 0:14:27This one is interesting in once they do blow it up, they're in and out.
0:14:27 > 0:14:30I don't even know if it's under a minute or two.
0:14:30 > 0:14:32Here we go.
0:14:32 > 0:14:34Crrr!
0:14:34 > 0:14:37And then what they don't know is, in one of the cassette in the money
0:14:37 > 0:14:40is this little tracker device that Barclays Bank have put in.
0:14:40 > 0:14:4420 minutes after leaving the bank, the tracker came to a halt
0:14:44 > 0:14:48in Huyton, Liverpool, at the Lodge Sandy Meadow.
0:14:48 > 0:14:50Home to Kurt Beddoes.
0:14:50 > 0:14:52The property had its own security cameras
0:14:52 > 0:14:56and Maria now has a copy of that footage.
0:14:56 > 0:14:58Here we go, car driving in.
0:15:01 > 0:15:06This is Ellis, I can tell that straightaway. See his hairline?
0:15:06 > 0:15:09Very distinctive headline there and little pointy features.
0:15:09 > 0:15:11And there's Bushell.
0:15:11 > 0:15:13You see? He's slightly chubbier than the others.
0:15:13 > 0:15:15What they don't realise is that the police are on their way.
0:15:15 > 0:15:20Then I think the police then should arrive at about 6:01.
0:15:21 > 0:15:24When the police arrive,
0:15:24 > 0:15:27they all make good their escape from the back.
0:15:27 > 0:15:30This house then backs out onto like a forest type area.
0:15:30 > 0:15:34So when they run away, it's pitch-black.
0:15:34 > 0:15:37The officers had no chance, I think, once they left the house,
0:15:37 > 0:15:38to catch them.
0:15:38 > 0:15:44From the address, the police recovered £97,000.
0:15:44 > 0:15:48They also found the recordings from the home security cameras.
0:15:48 > 0:15:49Within two weeks,
0:15:49 > 0:15:52they had rounded up six people they believed to be part of the gang.
0:15:52 > 0:15:57We now have brilliant CCTV footage of the gang and what they do.
0:15:57 > 0:16:01So, for example, one day we have Mr Beddoes going out
0:16:01 > 0:16:04and coming back with the big piping, the white piping,
0:16:04 > 0:16:06a roll of fuse wire going into the house,
0:16:06 > 0:16:11lovely four-bed paying cash £1,500 a month, beautiful Audi vehicles.
0:16:11 > 0:16:15They are clearly living the lifestyle funded by this
0:16:15 > 0:16:18criminality and unfortunately, they have been very successful up
0:16:18 > 0:16:22until they have been thankfully now caught.
0:16:22 > 0:16:26The challenge for Maria is to decide upon an existing charge
0:16:26 > 0:16:28that can fit this brand-new crime.
0:16:28 > 0:16:31What you're trying to do is get a charge that matches
0:16:31 > 0:16:39the offending, which gives the court the right powers of sentence,
0:16:39 > 0:16:45which isn't over the top, as in unfair for the defendant,
0:16:45 > 0:16:49but which reflects the gravity for the victim.
0:16:49 > 0:16:52There's all sorts of offences on the statute book.
0:16:52 > 0:16:55Hundreds and hundreds and hundreds and this is where the law books then
0:16:55 > 0:16:57come in, because we need to research...
0:16:57 > 0:17:01particularly things like explosives we're not particularly au fait with
0:17:01 > 0:17:03because fortunately, we don't have many of.
0:17:03 > 0:17:08So the type of charge and the level of charge can be quite tricky.
0:17:08 > 0:17:12I notice that in the Attorney General's report
0:17:12 > 0:17:16that this offending had only really taken place
0:17:16 > 0:17:18in Europe before now.
0:17:18 > 0:17:20So this is actually the first case of its type, is it?
0:17:20 > 0:17:23It was seen on the Continent beforehand, this specific MO
0:17:23 > 0:17:26- and, er...- So what have you charged them with, though?
0:17:26 > 0:17:29What I've picked is the Explosive Substances Act
0:17:29 > 0:17:31of 1883, I think it is.
0:17:31 > 0:17:34Erm, and that, to me, fits the bill.
0:17:34 > 0:17:38It's the causing of an explosion by any means. That, for example,
0:17:38 > 0:17:41is gunpowder or whatever, but this, for me, is
0:17:41 > 0:17:45the combination of the oxyacetylene and causing that explosion.
0:17:45 > 0:17:49Burglary commercial premises, ten years statutory maximum.
0:17:49 > 0:17:52My view is that that just didn't reflect the criminality here.
0:17:52 > 0:17:56I think the danger to the public, the causing the explosions,
0:17:56 > 0:17:58the level of professionalism,
0:17:58 > 0:18:00they should be looking at more than ten years, in my humble view.
0:18:00 > 0:18:03They are carrying the canisters in the vehicle.
0:18:03 > 0:18:05They're travelling at 190mph.
0:18:05 > 0:18:07They are involved in police chases.
0:18:07 > 0:18:11The risk to life and limb just to steal money,
0:18:11 > 0:18:14from my point of view, puts them at a level with armed robbery.
0:18:14 > 0:18:16You know, double-figure sentences.
0:18:19 > 0:18:23If there is a conviction, the trial judge will only be able to
0:18:23 > 0:18:26sentence within guidelines set according to the charge.
0:18:28 > 0:18:32Alison's attending a scrutiny panel at CPS headquarters,
0:18:32 > 0:18:35where volunteer community members share their views
0:18:35 > 0:18:36on completed cases.
0:18:36 > 0:18:39It's hosted by the Director of Public Prosecutions,
0:18:39 > 0:18:41Alison Saunders.
0:18:41 > 0:18:43I mean, I'm clear - as is everybody, which is why we're here -
0:18:43 > 0:18:47that religiously aggravated crime is something that is, you know,
0:18:47 > 0:18:48completely insidious.
0:18:48 > 0:18:52Any hate crime is bad so we want to make sure we've got our policies
0:18:52 > 0:18:55right, that we are implementing them and playing our part in this.
0:18:55 > 0:19:00The case today related to postings on a Russian-based website,
0:19:00 > 0:19:05but it is about rightwing extremism.
0:19:05 > 0:19:09Various postings were made by the person believed to be the suspect
0:19:09 > 0:19:13and he was arrested under Section 19 of the Public Order Act.
0:19:13 > 0:19:16So for an incitement to hatred offence.
0:19:16 > 0:19:19He said that he didn't see that there was anything wrong with
0:19:19 > 0:19:21what he'd posted on the website
0:19:21 > 0:19:23because it was a site for like-minded people.
0:19:23 > 0:19:25We got the papers,
0:19:25 > 0:19:28had a look at them and the reviewing lawyer concluded that
0:19:28 > 0:19:30the offence of incitement wasn't made out.
0:19:30 > 0:19:33And the offence he was charged with was
0:19:33 > 0:19:35Section 5 of the Public Order Act.
0:19:35 > 0:19:38He pleaded guilty and received a fine of £65,
0:19:38 > 0:19:42uplifted by £20 for the aggravating element.
0:19:42 > 0:19:45I thought the sentence for this was really...
0:19:45 > 0:19:47I thought it was offensive.
0:19:47 > 0:19:49To fine someone £65
0:19:49 > 0:19:53and to uplift it by £20, I thought was really offensive.
0:19:53 > 0:19:57It was clearly violent language
0:19:57 > 0:20:00but it's been charged right at the lowest end of the scale.
0:20:00 > 0:20:03The reading of the comments as not containing incitement or
0:20:03 > 0:20:05threats is just incomprehensible.
0:20:05 > 0:20:09And the fact that it was put on a forum of ostensibly like-minded
0:20:09 > 0:20:14people actually increases the likelihood of incitement, right?
0:20:14 > 0:20:17Because this is the kind of forum where people of an extremist
0:20:17 > 0:20:19mind-set wind each other up to do this kind of thing.
0:20:19 > 0:20:21"Kick them right back into the sea.
0:20:21 > 0:20:25"I don't want no effing n***** living next door to me."
0:20:25 > 0:20:26So it's just encouraging people.
0:20:26 > 0:20:30How is that is not explained that it's threatening is beyond me.
0:20:30 > 0:20:33One of the things we need to do is explain how we
0:20:33 > 0:20:36make our decisions, why we make our decisions, the sort of factors
0:20:36 > 0:20:40we take into account , which may not always be apparent.
0:20:40 > 0:20:42And it's really important that people understand -
0:20:42 > 0:20:44we don't just make them in a vacuum.
0:20:44 > 0:20:46We balance all sorts of different things,
0:20:46 > 0:20:49so you do have the human rights issues, you do have right to free
0:20:49 > 0:20:53speech, and we've got to balance all of those up, as well as making sure
0:20:53 > 0:20:56the evidence is there in the first place, which is the fundamental bit.
0:20:56 > 0:20:57Is there evidence or not?
0:20:57 > 0:20:58The particular issue
0:20:58 > 0:21:02and the particular difficulty was round what his intent was.
0:21:02 > 0:21:07And whether he intended to stir up religious hatred.
0:21:07 > 0:21:10I think that it's the lack of immediacy that will have
0:21:10 > 0:21:13played upon her thinking when she was writing this advice.
0:21:13 > 0:21:17He wasn't saying, "Let's all go and meet up at the park and go
0:21:17 > 0:21:20"and beat people up, etc, in the next half an hour."
0:21:20 > 0:21:22These were comments being made.
0:21:22 > 0:21:25There was no timeframe placed upon them.
0:21:25 > 0:21:28That is very important in these types of cases
0:21:28 > 0:21:30because we are governed by the policies and procedures
0:21:30 > 0:21:33and the case law which we have to function under.
0:21:36 > 0:21:38I've just been bunny shopping.
0:21:40 > 0:21:44It's, erm, been a bit too quiet around here
0:21:44 > 0:21:47so this is great excitement.
0:21:48 > 0:21:50It's now over 11 months
0:21:50 > 0:21:53since the death of the youngest of Nicky's three sons, Flynn.
0:21:53 > 0:21:57Despite Mr Maan being charged with causing death by careless driving,
0:21:57 > 0:22:00no trial date has yet been set.
0:22:00 > 0:22:05So Nick has two children and I have my three boys and our families
0:22:05 > 0:22:11came together last year and, yeah, it was a pretty lovely life.
0:22:11 > 0:22:16You can see their little ears, Dyl. Can you manage them?
0:22:16 > 0:22:17Yeah.
0:22:17 > 0:22:22'But on that day something happened and it changed my life forever,
0:22:22 > 0:22:25'my family's life forever'
0:22:25 > 0:22:27and it took Flynn's life.
0:22:29 > 0:22:30And I want to know why.
0:22:32 > 0:22:35We're going to put them in the greenhouse, Dyl.
0:22:35 > 0:22:39'When all the bodies meet to decide when the trial is,
0:22:39 > 0:22:43'it will be 14 months after the accident.'
0:22:43 > 0:22:45That is when they're going to set a day.
0:22:45 > 0:22:48Not the trial, just talk about a day.
0:22:50 > 0:22:54So the trial may be set for the following year.
0:22:55 > 0:22:59I don't understand why we can't have closure before.
0:23:01 > 0:23:04To try and speed up the case, Gary is entering it
0:23:04 > 0:23:07into an early guilty plea scheme.
0:23:07 > 0:23:11We've had no indication from the defendant in interview or
0:23:11 > 0:23:14through his solicitor that he intends to plead guilty.
0:23:14 > 0:23:16But the evidence would clearly suggest that the manner
0:23:16 > 0:23:18of his driving was careless.
0:23:18 > 0:23:22The idea with an early guilty plea, quite simply, is to put
0:23:22 > 0:23:23the defence on the spot.
0:23:23 > 0:23:26If the defendant doesn't want to plead guilty, he doesn't have to,
0:23:26 > 0:23:30he can bring the case out of the scheme.
0:23:30 > 0:23:33But the maximum credit comes by pleading guilty at the first
0:23:33 > 0:23:34opportunity.
0:23:34 > 0:23:38If the defendant pleads guilty now, saving the need for a trial,
0:23:38 > 0:23:41and for any witnesses to give evidence,
0:23:41 > 0:23:44he'll be rewarded with a discount to his sentence of a third.
0:23:45 > 0:23:48What we're trying to do is make sure that those cases
0:23:48 > 0:23:52that are going to be guilty pleas are in and out of the system
0:23:52 > 0:23:55very quickly because they're much easier to deal with.
0:23:55 > 0:23:57It means that the punishment can be also much more
0:23:57 > 0:24:00proximate to the offending, which has more impact.
0:24:00 > 0:24:03But what we can't control, of course,
0:24:03 > 0:24:06is what the defence want to do.
0:24:06 > 0:24:10So if they want to put us to proof about everything,
0:24:10 > 0:24:13we have to answer that. And that means that the timescale's extend.
0:24:14 > 0:24:17Mr Maan will be given two weeks to decide
0:24:17 > 0:24:20whether he wants to make an early guilty plea.
0:24:20 > 0:24:24So 15 discs will be in relation to 15 scenes of the CSI
0:24:24 > 0:24:25photos at this stage.
0:24:25 > 0:24:28And each disc, each scene will have its own disc.
0:24:28 > 0:24:32In an attempt to avoid a complicated and expensive trial,
0:24:32 > 0:24:35Maria has also offered the defendants in the ATM case
0:24:35 > 0:24:37early guilty pleas.
0:24:37 > 0:24:40We tried to put this into the early guilty plea scheme.
0:24:40 > 0:24:42Er, no-one was having it.
0:24:42 > 0:24:45And none of the defence would agree to that happening.
0:24:45 > 0:24:49Unable to prove the identity of the perpetrators through the banks'
0:24:49 > 0:24:54CCTV, Maria is going to try to prove to a jury that the defendants were
0:24:54 > 0:24:59at the scenes of the crimes through using their mobile phone data.
0:24:59 > 0:25:04The data itself when plotted, pretty much tells the story already.
0:25:04 > 0:25:07So can you just talk me through this document, then?
0:25:07 > 0:25:10This is for the cell site for Beddoes going down to,
0:25:10 > 0:25:13erm, Coventry.
0:25:13 > 0:25:16As a visual for the jury, it's relatively simple, isn't it?
0:25:16 > 0:25:20Because what you can say is, when you use a phone, it leaves
0:25:20 > 0:25:26a trace and this shows here that I start from Merseyside
0:25:26 > 0:25:32and I make my way all the way down to Oxfordshire and that's very good.
0:25:32 > 0:25:35The alarm goes off at 2.26 and heigh-ho,
0:25:35 > 0:25:36your phone is hitting there.
0:25:36 > 0:25:39So that's... that's very good evidence.
0:25:41 > 0:25:44Maria now has 3,000 pieces of evidence from which
0:25:44 > 0:25:46to try and build a case.
0:25:46 > 0:25:48This is Unit 18 in Huyton,
0:25:48 > 0:25:51and one of our defendants was seen
0:25:51 > 0:25:54acting a bit suspiciously round here.
0:25:54 > 0:25:57The officers then decide to do a search warrant at this lock up
0:25:57 > 0:26:00and it was just amazing.
0:26:00 > 0:26:04When they open it up we've got this stolen Audi vehicle.
0:26:04 > 0:26:07But you can see here how they've taken the glove box off
0:26:07 > 0:26:09and put in the oxyacetylene canisters.
0:26:09 > 0:26:14We've then got these plastic bags and inside were the robbers' kits.
0:26:14 > 0:26:19So Whittingham, he was caught outside, his DNA is on the glove.
0:26:19 > 0:26:23Now we have this printer that can print numberplates.
0:26:23 > 0:26:26So we can put that on the stolen vehicle.
0:26:26 > 0:26:28Putting every little piece of the jigsaw together,
0:26:28 > 0:26:31it becomes, builds, in my view an overwhelming case,
0:26:31 > 0:26:34really, against Beddoes and Cartwright.
0:26:36 > 0:26:39The CPS has just heard that Mr Maan also intends to reject
0:26:39 > 0:26:41his early guilty plea.
0:26:41 > 0:26:45The case will go to trial.
0:26:45 > 0:26:46I can't see what his defence is.
0:26:46 > 0:26:48No, no. I can't either.
0:26:48 > 0:26:50Maybe it's psychological, I don't know.
0:26:50 > 0:26:53It's the unwillingness to admit that you are responsible
0:26:53 > 0:26:54for the death of somebody else.
0:26:54 > 0:26:57Postponing the evil day. I don't know.
0:26:57 > 0:27:00Who knows what goes through the minds of defendants?
0:27:00 > 0:27:02It could be a whole variety of things, really.
0:27:02 > 0:27:05Nobody sets out in their car to kill somebody, do they?
0:27:05 > 0:27:09No, and I mean, it's the one offence that could lead to
0:27:09 > 0:27:11a law-abiding citizen ending up
0:27:11 > 0:27:15appearing before the Crown Court facing a prison sentence.
0:27:18 > 0:27:22Nicky has received an e-mail from her family liaison officer.
0:27:22 > 0:27:26I've had a request from the CPS asking if I would
0:27:26 > 0:27:28like a meeting with them regard...
0:27:28 > 0:27:30I need me glasses on!
0:27:30 > 0:27:33I've only just started wearing them. Oh, that's better.
0:27:33 > 0:27:35Erm...
0:27:35 > 0:27:39..with them regarding the progress of the case
0:27:39 > 0:27:41from their point of view.
0:27:41 > 0:27:43It's completely up to me.
0:27:43 > 0:27:47The bottom line is that the Crown Prosecutor
0:27:47 > 0:27:53is prosecuting on behalf of the state, not on behalf of the victim.
0:27:53 > 0:27:57But of course there's no other party in that courtroom
0:27:57 > 0:28:00who's representing the victim,
0:28:00 > 0:28:04so in a way, we feel as if we are.
0:28:06 > 0:28:09I think that's changed probably over the 20-odd years
0:28:09 > 0:28:11I've been prosecuting.
0:28:11 > 0:28:16We didn't really used to meet victims when I first started.
0:28:16 > 0:28:21And even if they were giving evidence in court, there was a very
0:28:21 > 0:28:26much a hands-off and a nervousness of even speaking to a victim.
0:28:26 > 0:28:29But now the direction of travel is to be more
0:28:29 > 0:28:32and more involved with the victims of crime.
0:28:34 > 0:28:36Almost a year after her son died,
0:28:36 > 0:28:40Nicky will have her first meeting with the CPS.
0:28:40 > 0:28:42Before we start can we offer our sincere condolences for
0:28:42 > 0:28:44the loss of your son?
0:28:44 > 0:28:47We appreciate it's a very difficult time for you.
0:28:47 > 0:28:49- We thoroughly understand that. - Thank you.
0:28:49 > 0:28:52What we can't do is discuss the evidence with you.
0:28:52 > 0:28:56You probably appreciate that because you will be a witness in due course.
0:28:56 > 0:29:01I just don't understand how he can say he's not guilty of driving
0:29:01 > 0:29:05carelessly when his car was on my side of the road.
0:29:05 > 0:29:06It...
0:29:06 > 0:29:10There's a growing feeling of...
0:29:10 > 0:29:13..it's going towards anger
0:29:13 > 0:29:17because if you can't say what happened,
0:29:17 > 0:29:20isn't that careless by default?
0:29:20 > 0:29:22- I don't understand. - Well, I understand your...
0:29:22 > 0:29:26I understand your... the statement you made
0:29:26 > 0:29:27and your confusion over that.
0:29:27 > 0:29:30- Yeah.- I want to avoid discussion of the evidence.
0:29:30 > 0:29:33We...We've got his plea there.
0:29:33 > 0:29:35We'll have to see what happens in a couple of months' time.
0:29:35 > 0:29:38Erm, we could speculate and sometimes that doesn't help.
0:29:42 > 0:29:46The questions that I wanted answers to I couldn't be told
0:29:46 > 0:29:51because I'm a witness and I have to go in court untarnished.
0:29:51 > 0:29:55And that actually is quite isolating.
0:29:55 > 0:29:58For them, it's evidence...
0:30:00 > 0:30:02It's my life.
0:30:02 > 0:30:04I want to know what other people saw.
0:30:04 > 0:30:08I want answers to my questions
0:30:08 > 0:30:12and I don't want them a year and a half down the line.
0:30:13 > 0:30:17Having said that, when you're talking to the people face-to-face,
0:30:17 > 0:30:23they can see your eyes, they can see what you're going through,
0:30:23 > 0:30:26that you are not just that name on that form
0:30:26 > 0:30:29or that it was just a schoolboy.
0:30:29 > 0:30:32It's not just a schoolboy, it's my son.
0:30:37 > 0:30:40At Liverpool Crown Court there's a plea and case management hearing
0:30:40 > 0:30:44to set the trial date in the ATM case.
0:30:44 > 0:30:48Three of the seven defendants have so far appeared.
0:30:48 > 0:30:51A guilty plea at this stage would mean a 25% discount
0:30:51 > 0:30:53in their sentence.
0:30:54 > 0:30:58The good news is that Beddoes and Cartwright pleaded guilty.
0:30:58 > 0:31:01The other person who was represented was Bushell, who indicated
0:31:01 > 0:31:04a not guilty plea, which was surprising considering he was
0:31:04 > 0:31:08caught on the CCTV coming back with the proceeds of the crime.
0:31:08 > 0:31:12But, erm, apparently he was having a walk near McDonald's and they
0:31:12 > 0:31:16drove past and collected him and he went for a McDonald's with them.
0:31:16 > 0:31:19Hopefully the jury will laugh that out of court.
0:31:19 > 0:31:22But it is a lot of extra work to make it a trial-ready file,
0:31:22 > 0:31:26but so be it. Obviously, he's a right to plead not guilty
0:31:26 > 0:31:27and we have to prove our case.
0:31:29 > 0:31:31'It used to be the case that a defendant could just plead
0:31:31 > 0:31:34'not guilty and say, "You prove the case against us."
0:31:34 > 0:31:36'And we would go to trial'
0:31:36 > 0:31:38and we would have to bring every
0:31:38 > 0:31:40single piece of evidence before the court.
0:31:40 > 0:31:44Actually, what we have now done is said, "Absolutely right - if you're
0:31:44 > 0:31:47"pleading not guilty it's for the prosecution to prove the case
0:31:47 > 0:31:52"but tell us which bits of the case are the ones that you're disputing."
0:31:57 > 0:32:01Mr Maan's lawyer has just sent his defence statement to the CPS.
0:32:03 > 0:32:06So what's he saying? Memory test. Save me reading it.
0:32:06 > 0:32:09Effectively, that there was a... there was a sudden deluge of rain,
0:32:09 > 0:32:12erm, heavy rain, which lasted approximately ten seconds -
0:32:12 > 0:32:16this is a precis - which caused his car to aquaplane.
0:32:16 > 0:32:19I think the phrase used at some stage in that -
0:32:19 > 0:32:23he was a passenger in a sliding car, which he couldn't control,
0:32:23 > 0:32:25through no fault of his own.
0:32:25 > 0:32:30If it was this deluge, which we don't accept,
0:32:30 > 0:32:32then you drive to the weather conditions.
0:32:32 > 0:32:36I mean, it's like on the motorway the other day it was torrential.
0:32:36 > 0:32:40I could barely see and I absolutely slowed down because your windows...
0:32:40 > 0:32:43Or the alternative is, it's not a motorway, you could indicate
0:32:43 > 0:32:46- and pull over and stop, if it was that bad.- Yes.
0:32:46 > 0:32:48Well, to put it crudely, if the weather is that bad,
0:32:48 > 0:32:50- it's not all bets are off, legally, is it?- No.
0:32:50 > 0:32:52- And therefore you've no culpability...- No.
0:32:52 > 0:32:56..if you plough into somebody coming in the opposite direction.
0:32:56 > 0:33:00When the defendant is spoken to at the scene,
0:33:00 > 0:33:02what does he say, initially?
0:33:02 > 0:33:06It's such a long time ago since I read the file.
0:33:06 > 0:33:08I know. That's the problem. I mean, that's...
0:33:08 > 0:33:12really the problem for the witnesses now, isn't it?
0:33:12 > 0:33:15I mean, it's awful to know that a piece of driving has taken
0:33:15 > 0:33:19the life of a child, but...it's just prolonging the agony, really.
0:33:20 > 0:33:22Yes, it's Constable Roberts.
0:33:22 > 0:33:25He stood near the Porsche, was on the pavement.
0:33:25 > 0:33:27"I could see an Asian male who appeared to be in shock
0:33:27 > 0:33:30"and he was visibly upset and shaking
0:33:30 > 0:33:32"and he said, 'The car just gave way.
0:33:32 > 0:33:34" 'I don't know what happened. I'm so sorry.'
0:33:34 > 0:33:37"And I made a note of his comments in my pocket notebook."
0:33:37 > 0:33:39It doesn't say... Interestingly, it doesn't say...
0:33:39 > 0:33:42- "There's such a heavy downpour... - "There's such a heavy downpour
0:33:42 > 0:33:46"and the road was awash, I couldn't see what was happening."
0:33:46 > 0:33:50The prosecution team now has to get the case ready for trial.
0:33:52 > 0:33:55In the Crown Court, when the case is decided by the jury,
0:33:55 > 0:33:59roughly 40% end with a not guilty verdict.
0:33:59 > 0:34:03And the next case involved damage to a mosque
0:34:03 > 0:34:06and a copy of the Koran had been thrown on to the floor
0:34:06 > 0:34:09and ripped and there was also urine on the carpet.
0:34:09 > 0:34:11Really unpleasant incident, actually.
0:34:11 > 0:34:16The jury, erm, came back with a not guilty verdict.
0:34:16 > 0:34:19It seems to me the key to this case was proving that the suspect
0:34:19 > 0:34:20actually entered the mosque.
0:34:20 > 0:34:22- Yeah.- It was.
0:34:22 > 0:34:25There doesn't seem to be any mention of fingerprints.
0:34:25 > 0:34:29Someone's picked up a Koran, someone has pulled shelves off the wall.
0:34:29 > 0:34:30This may just be my ignorance
0:34:30 > 0:34:33but can you extract DNA from urine or not?
0:34:33 > 0:34:34That's what I was going to say.
0:34:34 > 0:34:37You should be... you see them in American shows.
0:34:37 > 0:34:40There seems to be there is a lot of missed opportunities.
0:34:40 > 0:34:46For me, there are significant failings on behalf
0:34:46 > 0:34:51of the officers that investigated this crime from the moment
0:34:51 > 0:34:56they actually arrived and then their inability to respond
0:34:56 > 0:35:02promptly to the CPS request to complete the outstanding actions.
0:35:02 > 0:35:07This whole case, you know, even if it had been non-racially aggravated,
0:35:07 > 0:35:09is a complete disaster.
0:35:09 > 0:35:13The fact it's religiously aggravated just makes it even worse
0:35:13 > 0:35:16and I suppose that for me, listening to you, the lesson
0:35:16 > 0:35:21we need to take away is, actually, any victim faced with this level
0:35:21 > 0:35:26of service would end up losing faith in the criminal justice system,
0:35:26 > 0:35:27wouldn't they?
0:35:30 > 0:35:33An opening in the schedule at Chester Crown Court
0:35:33 > 0:35:36means the Maan case is being brought forward four months.
0:35:37 > 0:35:40I've had an official letter
0:35:40 > 0:35:43that has called me as a witness...
0:35:46 > 0:35:49..which is...very weird.
0:35:52 > 0:35:56"As a witness likely to give important evidence,
0:35:56 > 0:35:59"you must attend." Underlined, bold.
0:35:59 > 0:36:02"You must attend."
0:36:02 > 0:36:04That is really scary.
0:36:04 > 0:36:09That I must go and tell
0:36:09 > 0:36:12a room of strangers
0:36:12 > 0:36:15how my son died next to me.
0:36:15 > 0:36:16"If you've not already done so,
0:36:16 > 0:36:20"please consider making a victim personal statement...
0:36:23 > 0:36:25"..which will outline to the court
0:36:25 > 0:36:27"the impact that this crime has had on you."
0:36:32 > 0:36:38I'm not a victim and I don't want to be referred to as one.
0:36:38 > 0:36:44What I'm doing and what my family are doing, and Flynn's memory...
0:36:44 > 0:36:48is...surviving and living.
0:36:50 > 0:36:53The worst thing has happened.
0:36:54 > 0:36:56Nothing can be as bad as that day.
0:36:57 > 0:36:59With that as my benchmark,
0:36:59 > 0:37:04I'm not concerned about going to the courtroom.
0:37:09 > 0:37:10I'm scared.
0:37:10 > 0:37:12I'm scar...
0:37:16 > 0:37:20With the trial approaching, the CPS have hired an external
0:37:20 > 0:37:23barrister, who will try and prove to the jury that
0:37:23 > 0:37:26Mr Maan was guilty of causing the death of Flynn Morrissey
0:37:26 > 0:37:28by careless driving.
0:37:28 > 0:37:31Now, if he's driving properly and
0:37:31 > 0:37:35attentively in the conditions in which he finds himself,
0:37:35 > 0:37:37he shouldn't cross the central reservation
0:37:37 > 0:37:38into the path of someone else.
0:37:38 > 0:37:41That's the sort of starting point for this, isn't it?
0:37:41 > 0:37:42But something has made that happen.
0:37:42 > 0:37:45Gareth Roberts has just received a report from a road collision
0:37:45 > 0:37:48investigator appointed by the defence.
0:37:48 > 0:37:52He says the collision was due to aquaplaning.
0:37:52 > 0:37:54He says, "It is my opinion the loss of control was
0:37:54 > 0:37:57"caused by the vehicle aquaplaning, following what was described
0:37:57 > 0:38:00"by the first police officer to arrive at the scene as significant
0:38:00 > 0:38:03"surface water running across the carriageway from left to right."
0:38:03 > 0:38:04Let's take it to an extreme.
0:38:04 > 0:38:07If you're going down round a corner and the car loses control
0:38:07 > 0:38:09and you don't do anything about it,
0:38:09 > 0:38:11you keep rotating in that direction.
0:38:11 > 0:38:13You would go round.
0:38:13 > 0:38:15But he says he went to the left and then to the right.
0:38:15 > 0:38:18But he says he didn't do anything about it.
0:38:18 > 0:38:19Now, to go from the left to the right,
0:38:19 > 0:38:21he's got to have done something about it.
0:38:21 > 0:38:23The car will not do that on its own.
0:38:23 > 0:38:27And for it to go from one way to the other, there has got to be grip.
0:38:27 > 0:38:30And therefore he is not aquaplaning at that time.
0:38:30 > 0:38:33If he aquaplaned, it happened at the very, very beginning and then
0:38:33 > 0:38:37his overreaction to the aquaplaning took him down into impact.
0:38:37 > 0:38:40Now, the calculation I've put...
0:38:40 > 0:38:44I've used sliding friction cos I did skid tests at the scene.
0:38:44 > 0:38:47So the total distance of perceive, react
0:38:47 > 0:38:49- and slide to a stop of 72 metres... - Yeah.
0:38:49 > 0:38:52..takes into consideration sliding friction.
0:38:52 > 0:38:54The conclusion you came to is that if he had been driving properly
0:38:54 > 0:38:56he would have been able to stop.
0:38:56 > 0:38:57Even if at any point during that
0:38:57 > 0:39:00- whole scenario he hit the brakes... - Yeah.
0:39:00 > 0:39:02..it wouldn't have travelled the 90 metres.
0:39:02 > 0:39:04It would still have stopped. It might have travelled the 90
0:39:04 > 0:39:07- metres, but it wouldn't have been doing 30mph at the end.- Yeah.
0:39:07 > 0:39:10It doesn't seem to me as if he's done any braking.
0:39:10 > 0:39:12So all he's done is try to correct, correct,
0:39:12 > 0:39:14correct and then we've got the collision.
0:39:14 > 0:39:16I think that's a devastating point, actually.
0:39:16 > 0:39:18I think when a jury hear that
0:39:18 > 0:39:20if this gentleman had hit his brakes properly,
0:39:20 > 0:39:24when he found himself losing control of the car,
0:39:24 > 0:39:25there's a very good chance
0:39:25 > 0:39:28he would have stopped prior to the collision
0:39:28 > 0:39:31and the collision might have been a prang
0:39:31 > 0:39:34rather than the devastating collision which we have.
0:39:36 > 0:39:38When I'm getting ready,
0:39:38 > 0:39:41it's really weird because I can hear Flynn.
0:39:42 > 0:39:45Cos when I used to get ready before and he'd come in
0:39:45 > 0:39:48and go, "You look nice," and I can hear his voice.
0:39:48 > 0:39:50So when I'm putting my make-up on,
0:39:50 > 0:39:53it feels like the right thing to be doing.
0:39:55 > 0:39:57Cos I think sometimes
0:39:57 > 0:40:01you could become aware about what other people think.
0:40:01 > 0:40:04So if you go out there and you've got your red lipstick on,
0:40:04 > 0:40:08it doesn't really fit with the image of a mum
0:40:08 > 0:40:12who's lost her little boy, really, so...
0:40:12 > 0:40:14I don't know...
0:40:14 > 0:40:17It shouldn't matter what people think.
0:40:19 > 0:40:21But it does, you know?
0:40:23 > 0:40:26But I'm looking forward to tonight.
0:40:26 > 0:40:29It's always good fun.
0:40:29 > 0:40:31And we do it for Flynn.
0:40:31 > 0:40:36Be the mum that he would recognise and he would recognise me, you know.
0:40:36 > 0:40:40Sometimes I cry and that's OK,
0:40:40 > 0:40:43but I could just imagine him
0:40:43 > 0:40:45watching me and just going, "What you doing?
0:40:45 > 0:40:47"What you doing that for?"
0:40:47 > 0:40:51So I get up and put my lippy on
0:40:51 > 0:40:52and go and party.
0:40:54 > 0:40:59# Sometimes I feel I've got to run away
0:40:59 > 0:41:02# I've got to get away... #
0:41:02 > 0:41:05Prosecuting somebody, hopefully it will get them justice but it
0:41:05 > 0:41:08doesn't mean that everything's rosy at the end of the prosecution.
0:41:08 > 0:41:11We're not there to mend things, cos we can't.
0:41:11 > 0:41:14That awful thing has happened to them
0:41:14 > 0:41:16and all we can do is prosecute.
0:41:18 > 0:41:21The ATM case will soon be in court.
0:41:21 > 0:41:23There are already 327 witness
0:41:23 > 0:41:28statements and 2,500 pages of exhibits
0:41:28 > 0:41:32and Maria is still adding to the evidence.
0:41:32 > 0:41:37Now, Mr Bushell is someone who's actually seen
0:41:37 > 0:41:40red-handed at the address. His DNA is recovered there.
0:41:40 > 0:41:42Now, the further enquiries
0:41:42 > 0:41:44since he's pleaded not guilty have been interesting.
0:41:44 > 0:41:47On his phone, there's a jokey photograph of him
0:41:47 > 0:41:51pointing to an open ATM and laughing.
0:41:51 > 0:41:53I think that's really good. I think a jury will like that.
0:41:53 > 0:41:55- Yeah.- Colourful.
0:41:55 > 0:41:58He then, in his defence case statement,
0:41:58 > 0:42:00said he was in Spain for a lot of the time.
0:42:00 > 0:42:04Well, his phone now, we're locating him back in England so he's...
0:42:04 > 0:42:05So he wasn't in Spain.
0:42:05 > 0:42:08So he's telling lies and juries don't like people who tell lies.
0:42:08 > 0:42:12So we've got that. We then have Whittingham.
0:42:12 > 0:42:16We finally managed to get into his phone and came out with this,
0:42:16 > 0:42:18which was brilliant.
0:42:18 > 0:42:19Photos on his phone?
0:42:19 > 0:42:22Right, this kit was found in unit 18.
0:42:22 > 0:42:25On Whittingham's phone, there's a picture. That's Whittingham.
0:42:25 > 0:42:28- A picture of himself?- That's such good evidence for us, though.
0:42:28 > 0:42:32I think it's brilliant and I just said, if I'm sitting on a jury now,
0:42:32 > 0:42:34I think you've partial DNA on that glove, you've got a photo
0:42:34 > 0:42:37of yourself wearing that because you're a career criminal.
0:42:37 > 0:42:39And you couldn't have chosen something more distinctive.
0:42:39 > 0:42:42That's what I mean. What an idiot. So, erm,
0:42:42 > 0:42:44that's only come in today so I'm really pleased with that.
0:42:44 > 0:42:45That's really good.
0:42:45 > 0:42:49They should be pleading and that makes me so cross when they don't.
0:42:49 > 0:42:53With the Maan trial imminent, Nicky and her mother are going to
0:42:53 > 0:42:57meet the prosecution barrister before he questions Nicky in court.
0:42:57 > 0:43:04These cases are very, very tricky in that the degree of his bad
0:43:04 > 0:43:07driving is quite subtle, if I can put it that way.
0:43:07 > 0:43:09It's not...
0:43:09 > 0:43:10Are you able to clarify what
0:43:10 > 0:43:13- your ideas are about that careless driving?- Yep.
0:43:13 > 0:43:14- Cos I know what I saw.- Yep.
0:43:14 > 0:43:17I'm a little bit wary of talking to you too much about it
0:43:17 > 0:43:19because I don't want to colour your evidence, you know?
0:43:19 > 0:43:22I take my case from you, not the other way, if you see what
0:43:22 > 0:43:25I mean. Oh, thank you. I appreciate that.
0:43:25 > 0:43:28What I saw gave me the impression...
0:43:31 > 0:43:34..that there was a certain manoeuvre going to be...
0:43:34 > 0:43:38Yeah, you thought he was thinking about overtaking, didn't you?
0:43:38 > 0:43:40Bearing in mind that I'm a driver with all those years
0:43:40 > 0:43:44experience, that is exactly what it looked like to me.
0:43:44 > 0:43:47In that way, your evidence is significant.
0:43:47 > 0:43:50You're not coming just as a mother to sort of...
0:43:50 > 0:43:53to add some colour to the life which was lost.
0:43:53 > 0:43:54- Absolutely not.- You're also coming
0:43:54 > 0:43:57as a witness of fact to tell the jury what it is you saw.
0:43:57 > 0:44:00And then after that, Mr Dawson will ask you some questions.
0:44:00 > 0:44:04But what I know he will not do is bully you or shout at you.
0:44:04 > 0:44:06It's not that kind of case.
0:44:06 > 0:44:08He can bring it on. I know what I saw.
0:44:08 > 0:44:10Yeah, I can see that.
0:44:10 > 0:44:12I can see you're pretty robust
0:44:12 > 0:44:14and you'd handle yourself absolutely fantastically.
0:44:14 > 0:44:17I'll be honest with you, I'm not expecting a conviction.
0:44:17 > 0:44:20But at the same time, if I didn't think there was any chance
0:44:20 > 0:44:23- I'd have told the CPS a long time ago...- Yeah.
0:44:23 > 0:44:26..and that's not the case here, but it is tricky.
0:44:26 > 0:44:29It is a very challenging case.
0:44:32 > 0:44:35Part of my frustration is
0:44:35 > 0:44:38over the months you embark on a journey
0:44:38 > 0:44:46and as we're beginning to walk again after, you know,
0:44:46 > 0:44:51just being bulldozed over by this terrible thing,
0:44:51 > 0:44:56all of a sudden we've got to go back to that day,
0:44:56 > 0:45:00remember exactly who we were, how it made us feel, what was
0:45:00 > 0:45:05the weather like and it feels...
0:45:05 > 0:45:08Well, I said to you, it feels cruel.
0:45:09 > 0:45:12I think it's a mistake to get any sort of attachment
0:45:12 > 0:45:14to any sort of outcome.
0:45:14 > 0:45:17Provided what happens is fair and right,
0:45:17 > 0:45:20then I think that's all anybody can ask for.
0:45:23 > 0:45:26Nicky is the first of 13 witnesses for the prosecution.
0:45:50 > 0:45:54She is cross-examined by the defence barrister for 24 minutes.
0:46:15 > 0:46:18She was fantastic as a witness, actually,
0:46:18 > 0:46:20because she was forceful
0:46:20 > 0:46:22and clearly telling the truth.
0:46:22 > 0:46:25She stood up very strongly to the cross-examination of her,
0:46:25 > 0:46:27which was hard.
0:46:27 > 0:46:30But she was... At no point, was she in any way hysterical
0:46:30 > 0:46:33or excessively emotional, or anything like that,
0:46:33 > 0:46:35which - without sounding, sort of, cold -
0:46:35 > 0:46:37is quite important in a witness.
0:46:37 > 0:46:39It was just like being at the top of a bungee,
0:46:39 > 0:46:41just that...
0:46:41 > 0:46:43moment before you go...
0:46:45 > 0:46:46Just so...
0:46:49 > 0:46:51..scary,
0:46:51 > 0:46:54but it needs to be
0:46:54 > 0:46:57examined properly for Flynn -
0:46:57 > 0:46:59to know what the truth is.
0:47:01 > 0:47:03In Liverpool,
0:47:03 > 0:47:04after five weeks of the trial,
0:47:04 > 0:47:07the ATM case is drawing to a close.
0:47:07 > 0:47:09Anya did a really, really excellent closing.
0:47:09 > 0:47:11I'll give you an example.
0:47:11 > 0:47:13Thomas Whittingham, month of August.
0:47:13 > 0:47:15Anya goes through, laboriously,
0:47:15 > 0:47:16each day in August,
0:47:16 > 0:47:19you go to sleep in Widnes, you wake in Widnes.
0:47:19 > 0:47:20And really interestingly,
0:47:20 > 0:47:22the three days he didn't do that
0:47:22 > 0:47:25- were the three dates of the ATM attacks.- Funny that.
0:47:25 > 0:47:26It was such an own goal.
0:47:26 > 0:47:27It was brilliant.
0:47:27 > 0:47:29I feel a lot more confident.
0:47:29 > 0:47:30That's really good.
0:47:30 > 0:47:32I think it's come together really well.
0:47:32 > 0:47:35Today, the jury is expected to deliver their verdict.
0:47:35 > 0:47:40It's quite an odd feeling, to be honest.
0:47:40 > 0:47:43As a prosecutor, what you're meant to do is strive for justice
0:47:43 > 0:47:45but if you think somebody is guilty
0:47:45 > 0:47:48and you've worked on the case for a long time,
0:47:48 > 0:47:50you do want a conviction.
0:47:50 > 0:47:51And for someone like Maria,
0:47:51 > 0:47:54where it's been her life's work for practically a year,
0:47:54 > 0:47:58she'll certainly be quite nervous now sitting in court, I suspect.
0:47:58 > 0:48:01And we're just sitting, waiting from afar.
0:48:07 > 0:48:08Right, OK.
0:48:11 > 0:48:13What's happened? Right, brilliant. OK.
0:48:13 > 0:48:15Can you come back to us, Jack?
0:48:15 > 0:48:17Thank you. Bye-bye. Bye-bye.
0:48:17 > 0:48:20What's happened?
0:48:20 > 0:48:22Guilty for Bushell, Guilty for Whittingham.
0:48:24 > 0:48:27There are now two guilty verdicts
0:48:27 > 0:48:29to add to the earlier three guilty pleas.
0:48:29 > 0:48:32There is also one hung jury decision and one acquittal.
0:48:34 > 0:48:35We've got an acquittal.
0:48:43 > 0:48:44So be it.
0:48:45 > 0:48:47Move on.
0:48:49 > 0:48:52You have to be quite dispassionate really.
0:48:52 > 0:48:55Our job is to put the case before the court,
0:48:55 > 0:48:58but then we've to just allow justice to run its course.
0:48:58 > 0:49:00We always try and say in the press
0:49:00 > 0:49:04that we respect the decision of the jury
0:49:04 > 0:49:07because we have to and we do.
0:49:10 > 0:49:12There is a feeling though, when you've done a lot of work
0:49:12 > 0:49:16and you think there should have been convictions obviously.
0:49:18 > 0:49:19There is that.
0:49:19 > 0:49:20But I mean, this is a good result.
0:49:20 > 0:49:24We've got at least four offenders found guilty, or pleaded guilty,
0:49:24 > 0:49:25so that's a result in itself.
0:49:27 > 0:49:31At Chester Crown Court, it's the third day of proceedings.
0:49:31 > 0:49:34Mr Maan is due to give his version of events.
0:49:58 > 0:50:01The defendant is cross-examined for 29 minutes.
0:50:15 > 0:50:18I thought his explanation was all right.
0:50:18 > 0:50:20He gave it, and he...
0:50:20 > 0:50:23But at the same time, there were a number of inconsistencies
0:50:23 > 0:50:24and there were a number of times
0:50:24 > 0:50:26I thought he was wriggling a little bit.
0:50:26 > 0:50:28But I'm not surprised about that
0:50:28 > 0:50:30because he's in a difficult position.
0:50:30 > 0:50:32But he was properly upset
0:50:32 > 0:50:34by what had happened.
0:50:34 > 0:50:36Someone who a jury will think,
0:50:36 > 0:50:40"If I want to err on his side, I will do so cos I don't dislike him,
0:50:40 > 0:50:42"I don't hate him."
0:50:42 > 0:50:44Which is important in all cases really,
0:50:44 > 0:50:46especially when you're defending.
0:50:46 > 0:50:49Tomorrow, the defence expert will testify,
0:50:49 > 0:50:53then the two sides will present their closing arguments.
0:50:54 > 0:50:57In the ATM case, there'll be a final hearing
0:50:57 > 0:51:00for the judge to decide the defendants' sentences.
0:51:00 > 0:51:05This is actually the bundle that has been put together
0:51:05 > 0:51:07just for the sentencing hearing.
0:51:07 > 0:51:10It's apparent as you read through these things,
0:51:10 > 0:51:13that just sentencing somebody isn't that straightforward.
0:51:13 > 0:51:17They don't stick a finger in the air and make up a sentence.
0:51:17 > 0:51:19The interesting thing here is,
0:51:19 > 0:51:22because the offending is quite unusual,
0:51:22 > 0:51:26there aren't any sentencing guidelines to help us.
0:51:26 > 0:51:30The maximum sentence here for the explosives offence
0:51:30 > 0:51:33is life imprisonment.
0:51:33 > 0:51:36For the burglary aspect to it,
0:51:36 > 0:51:38it's ten years' imprisonment.
0:51:38 > 0:51:42You've then got the previous convictions of all the defendants.
0:51:42 > 0:51:44For example, one of the defendants here
0:51:44 > 0:51:47has got 60 previous convictions
0:51:47 > 0:51:49and he's only 20.
0:51:51 > 0:51:54And the judge will take this into account when sentencing.
0:51:54 > 0:51:57So, the more previous convictions you've got,
0:51:57 > 0:52:01the more likely you are to get a more significant sentence
0:52:01 > 0:52:03the next time round.
0:52:03 > 0:52:05But ballpark figure is, sort of, double figures.
0:52:05 > 0:52:06Early double figures.
0:52:07 > 0:52:09I might well be completely wrong now.
0:52:09 > 0:52:12I shall look a fool if I am.
0:52:13 > 0:52:15The judge declares that this was,
0:52:15 > 0:52:19"Undoubtedly serious organized crime on a significant scale,"
0:52:19 > 0:52:22that these were "uncontrolled explosions,"
0:52:22 > 0:52:25and, "although they may not have been intended to cause death
0:52:25 > 0:52:26"or serious injury,
0:52:26 > 0:52:28"nonetheless they were very fortunate
0:52:28 > 0:52:30"no-one was hurt or killed."
0:52:36 > 0:52:39I'll go and tell Claire what happened,
0:52:39 > 0:52:42so you can go to the pub if you want.
0:52:42 > 0:52:44More than my guess of 12?
0:52:44 > 0:52:47Yes, and that was my guess as well.
0:52:47 > 0:52:49- Oh, was it?- Yes.- Right.
0:52:49 > 0:52:51The two who were leading roles
0:52:51 > 0:52:53each got 17 years...
0:52:53 > 0:52:55Oh, goodness. Yeah, OK. Oh, wow.
0:52:55 > 0:52:59..with eight years concurrent for the conspiracy to burgle.
0:52:59 > 0:53:01Quite a significant sentence,
0:53:01 > 0:53:05bearing in mind, he'd given them 25% credit for their guilty pleas.
0:53:05 > 0:53:07Gosh, that's huge, isn't it? Really well done.
0:53:07 > 0:53:08And as Maria was saying,
0:53:08 > 0:53:11it just shows that we picked the right charges.
0:53:11 > 0:53:13And that's what we said right at the beginning of the case
0:53:13 > 0:53:16is we wanted to make sure that this doesn't pay.
0:53:16 > 0:53:18- Didn't we?- Yes, that's right.
0:53:18 > 0:53:21That was the whole kind of thought when we first started to look at it.
0:53:21 > 0:53:24- This is a new series of attacks. - Yes. Yes.
0:53:24 > 0:53:26- So, yeah, it's a really good result. - Yeah.
0:53:29 > 0:53:30At Chester Crown Court,
0:53:30 > 0:53:32the jury is now deciding
0:53:32 > 0:53:34whether they think the prosecution has proved
0:53:34 > 0:53:36that Mr Maan is guilty
0:53:36 > 0:53:39of causing death by careless driving.
0:53:39 > 0:53:41It's not a jury I'd want to be on
0:53:41 > 0:53:44because the issues are quite complicated in a way.
0:53:44 > 0:53:46No-one has been able to say,
0:53:46 > 0:53:50"This is the exact reason why he lost control of his car."
0:53:50 > 0:53:51So, you're saying to a jury,
0:53:51 > 0:53:55"I want you to be sure that he lost control due to carelessness."
0:53:55 > 0:53:57Even I don't know why it happened
0:53:57 > 0:53:59and that feels a little bit odd.
0:53:59 > 0:54:03It's a case which, if I was on the other side, defending it,
0:54:03 > 0:54:05I'd have thought, straight away, "I'll win this."
0:54:05 > 0:54:08Because you think all you have to do is, without sounding arrogant -
0:54:08 > 0:54:10but you'll think all you have to do
0:54:10 > 0:54:12is put enough doubt into the minds of the jury
0:54:12 > 0:54:14and then they should acquit.
0:54:14 > 0:54:16But saying that, as the week has gone on,
0:54:16 > 0:54:20I think the jury got enough of what I was trying to convey.
0:54:20 > 0:54:21I hope so, but who knows?
0:54:23 > 0:54:27It's the fairest way to find...
0:54:27 > 0:54:30the closest thing we can to the truth.
0:54:31 > 0:54:34Whatever the outcome is...
0:54:34 > 0:54:36I trust that outcome.
0:54:36 > 0:54:38I've been there every day and...
0:54:40 > 0:54:42..it's fair and it's just.
0:54:46 > 0:54:49After two-and-a-half hours, the jury returns.
0:54:49 > 0:54:52They find Mr Maan guilty.
0:54:52 > 0:54:54It didn't take the jury that long.
0:54:54 > 0:54:56I would have thought they might have been out for longer,
0:54:56 > 0:54:59which means that, at the end of the day, they were fairly sure.
0:54:59 > 0:55:00They were very sure.
0:55:00 > 0:55:03Mr Maan does not receive a custodial sentence.
0:55:03 > 0:55:06The judge decides to give him a 12 month community order
0:55:06 > 0:55:09of 150 hours of unpaid work.
0:55:09 > 0:55:12He's also disqualified from driving for 12 months
0:55:12 > 0:55:14with no re-test required
0:55:14 > 0:55:18and ordered to pay £4,200 in costs.
0:55:19 > 0:55:22The judge very rightly said, at the end of his sentencing,
0:55:22 > 0:55:24when he was giving his sentencing remarks,
0:55:24 > 0:55:27that, of course, the penalty in no way
0:55:27 > 0:55:28reflects the deep suffering
0:55:28 > 0:55:30which has been felt by the Clifford family -
0:55:30 > 0:55:34and that's got to be right because it doesn't, but no penalty could.
0:55:38 > 0:55:39I can't believe
0:55:39 > 0:55:43that it's behind me now.
0:55:43 > 0:55:45It has been so long.
0:55:45 > 0:55:46It's been...
0:55:47 > 0:55:50..16 months, or something like that.
0:55:50 > 0:55:52But the point, for me,
0:55:52 > 0:55:55happened yesterday before the verdict was announced.
0:55:55 > 0:56:00And I realised that...
0:56:00 > 0:56:02I knew the truth.
0:56:02 > 0:56:06It was a momentary lapse of concentration
0:56:06 > 0:56:08on the part of the other driver -
0:56:08 > 0:56:11and before the verdict was read out,
0:56:11 > 0:56:14I asked if the other driver
0:56:14 > 0:56:16would like to meet with me.
0:56:18 > 0:56:21She went and spoke to the defendant, didn't she?
0:56:21 > 0:56:23So I understand, yeah.
0:56:23 > 0:56:25She apparently wanted to make sure
0:56:25 > 0:56:29that he didn't continue to have the guilt that, clearly,
0:56:29 > 0:56:32- he's been feeling since the accident happened.- Yeah.
0:56:32 > 0:56:36I think it shows great humanity really, doesn't it?
0:56:37 > 0:56:38Absolutely.
0:56:38 > 0:56:42You sort of wonder if you could be quite so magnanimous.
0:56:42 > 0:56:44Well, yes. You'd like to think you would be but...
0:56:44 > 0:56:46probably wouldn't.
0:56:46 > 0:56:48No.
0:56:48 > 0:56:50But...it's difficult, isn't it?
0:56:50 > 0:56:53Because now the family know that...
0:56:53 > 0:56:57Well, a court have found this wasn't an accident so...
0:56:58 > 0:57:00..it didn't have to happen.
0:57:01 > 0:57:04Baying for somebody's blood,
0:57:04 > 0:57:07it doesn't solve anything, does it?
0:57:07 > 0:57:09It really doesn't.
0:57:10 > 0:57:12So...
0:57:12 > 0:57:15I'm grateful to him for seeing me.
0:57:15 > 0:57:17I mean...
0:57:17 > 0:57:19it's helped me.
0:57:19 > 0:57:22He's a good man who's made a mistake...
0:57:23 > 0:57:26..and the consequences have been devastating...
0:57:27 > 0:57:31..but they're devastating to him as well and...
0:57:31 > 0:57:34I hope that, one day, he goes on to have his family.
0:57:34 > 0:57:39He's just got married and I want him to be a good daddy.
0:57:39 > 0:57:42I don't want this to ruin his life.
0:57:45 > 0:57:47Flynn...
0:57:49 > 0:57:52Flynn's presence in this world
0:57:52 > 0:57:55should not ruin anybody's life...
0:57:57 > 0:57:58..and...
0:58:00 > 0:58:02..I'm going to make sure that happens.
0:58:15 > 0:58:18If you're interested in finding out more about the justice system,
0:58:18 > 0:58:21you can join in a simulated court case from The Open University
0:58:21 > 0:58:24and reach your own verdict.
0:58:24 > 0:58:27Go to bbc.co.uk/prosecutors
0:58:27 > 0:58:30and follow the links to The Open University.