Crown Court - Citizens (1984) - video Dailymotion

Jezza

Joseph Kiernan, a travelling scrap dealer, stands accused of theft.  Douglas Wilmer, famous for his portrayal of Sherlock Holmes, plays Judge Copeland. John Fortune, here as prosecuting counsel, would go on to specialise in satirical comedy in "Bremner, Bird and Fortune".   David Calder, here as Gordon Sibley, would go on to further fame in "Star Cops" and Lynda La Plante's "Widows". Watch out also for a young Colin Firth, as PC Franklin. I wonder what happened to him?!

Transcript

00:00:00Joseph Michael Kiernan stands charged on indictment with theft,

00:00:16contrary to Section 1 of the Theft Act, 1968.

00:00:19The case we're about to see is fictional.

00:00:23The procedure, however, is legally accurate.

00:00:25The characters are played by actors,

00:00:27but the jury is selected from members of the general public.

00:00:30He has pleaded not guilty.

00:00:31And it is your charge, having heard the evidence,

00:00:33to say whether he be guilty or not.

00:00:38Mr. Parrin?

00:00:40Thank you, Your Honor.

00:00:41His Honor, Judge Copeland,

00:00:43presides in the case of the Queen against Kiernan.

00:00:47Ladies and gentlemen of the jury,

00:00:49the accused, Joseph Michael Kiernan,

00:00:51stands indicted of theft,

00:00:54contrary to Section 1 of the Theft Act, 1968.

00:00:57The particulars being that on Friday, the 10th of September,

00:00:591982, he stole a copper cylinder

00:01:02from the garden shed of Mr. Gordon Sibley,

00:01:05who resides in Maytree Avenue, Fulchester.

00:01:08In the course of the evidence,

00:01:10you will hear that the defendant,

00:01:11who describes himself as a travelling scrap dealer,

00:01:14knew that the copper cylinder was kept in Mr. Sibley's garden shed,

00:01:18that he was seen in Mr. Sibley's garden

00:01:20on the night that the cylinder disappeared from the shed,

00:01:23and that on the following morning,

00:01:24the cylinder was discovered by the police

00:01:26under the defendant's lorry

00:01:28at the encampment in which he was residing.

00:01:30You will also hear that the defendant's fingerprints

00:01:32were found on the copper cylinder

00:01:35and on the door of the shed in Mr. Sibley's garden.

00:01:38It is for the prosecution to prove to you

00:01:40that taken together,

00:01:41the weight of this evidence is overwhelming

00:01:43and that the defendant is guilty as charged.

00:01:47With your Honour's permission,

00:01:48I shall call my first witness,

00:01:50Mrs. Susan Archard, please.

00:02:05Take the book in your right hand

00:02:07and read aloud the words on the card.

00:02:10I swear by almighty God...

00:02:11Could the witness speak up a little, please?

00:02:14I'm sorry.

00:02:15Again, please.

00:02:16I swear by almighty God,

00:02:18the evidence I give shall be the truth,

00:02:20the whole truth,

00:02:20and nothing but the truth.

00:02:27Mr. Perry?

00:02:29You are Susan Archard?

00:02:31Yes.

00:02:32And what is your address, Mrs. Archard?

00:02:3417, Maytree Avenue, Forchester.

00:02:36And you live next door to Mr. Gordon Sibley,

00:02:39is that correct?

00:02:40Yes.

00:02:40Mr. Sibley lives at number 15.

00:02:42Our houses are semi-detached.

00:02:44I see, Mrs. Archard.

00:02:45Now, were you at home in the early hours

00:02:47of Friday the 10th of September, 1982?

00:02:50Yes, I was.

00:02:52I wonder if you'd be good enough

00:02:53to tell the jury

00:02:54exactly what you heard and saw at that time.

00:02:57Well, I was lying in bed upstairs.

00:03:00I wasn't asleep.

00:03:02The weather was very warm for September,

00:03:04as warm as it has been lately,

00:03:05and I don't usually sleep very well in any case.

00:03:09Suddenly, I heard a dog barking.

00:03:12It sounded so close,

00:03:13it quite startled me.

00:03:15And then I heard a man's voice.

00:03:17Can you say approximately

00:03:18what time it was

00:03:19when you heard these sounds?

00:03:20Yes.

00:03:21It was two o'clock in the morning.

00:03:22I'd just looked at my bedside clock

00:03:24a few moments before.

00:03:25And what happened then, Mrs. Archard?

00:03:27I lay very still for a few seconds,

00:03:30and then I screwed up my courage

00:03:32and went to the window.

00:03:33And what did you see?

00:03:34I saw that man and a dog

00:03:36in Mr. Sibley's back garden.

00:03:38When you say that man,

00:03:39you mean the accused?

00:03:40Yes.

00:03:41Mr. Bass?

00:03:43If it please, Your Honor,

00:03:44the identity of the person

00:03:45Mrs. Archard saw is not in dispute.

00:03:47The defendant does not deny

00:03:49that he was in Mr. Sibley's garden

00:03:51at the time in question.

00:03:52Thank you, Mr. Bass.

00:03:53I'll continue, Mr. Perry.

00:03:55Your Honor.

00:03:56You have a clear view

00:03:57of Mr. Sibley's back garden

00:03:59from your bedroom window,

00:04:00do you, Mrs. Archard?

00:04:01Yes, I do.

00:04:02And had you seen the accused

00:04:03in that garden

00:04:05before the date of the alleged crime?

00:04:07Yes.

00:04:08Mm-hmm.

00:04:08Could you tell the court when, please?

00:04:11Yes, on the Wednesday,

00:04:12just two days

00:04:13before the cylinder disappeared,

00:04:15I caught him red-handed

00:04:16poking about

00:04:17in Mr. Sibley's garden shed.

00:04:19Mr. Bass?

00:04:20If you wish to object

00:04:23to this line of questioning,

00:04:24what happened two days before

00:04:25would appear to have

00:04:26very little to do

00:04:27with the alleged defense.

00:04:28I'm most grateful, Your Honor,

00:04:29but it will, in fact,

00:04:30be the defense's contention

00:04:31that what did or did not happen

00:04:33two days before

00:04:34is of great relevance

00:04:35to the case.

00:04:36I'm, therefore,

00:04:37content to let

00:04:37my learned friend proceed.

00:04:39Very well.

00:04:42What did you do

00:04:43when you saw the accused

00:04:44poking about in the shed,

00:04:45Mrs. Archard?

00:04:46I called down to him.

00:04:47I was at the bedroom window

00:04:48and I called down

00:04:50to ask what he was doing.

00:04:51And what did the accused do?

00:04:52He jumped.

00:04:53I obviously startled him.

00:04:55Then he turned

00:04:56and looked up

00:04:57and said,

00:04:58I'm looking for scrap.

00:04:59Have you got any old scrap,

00:05:01Mrs.?

00:05:02I see.

00:05:03Now, on the night,

00:05:05or rather early morning

00:05:06of the alleged crime,

00:05:07when you looked out

00:05:08of your bedroom window,

00:05:09Mrs. Archard,

00:05:10could you see

00:05:10what was happening?

00:05:11Yes.

00:05:12The dog was in the long grass

00:05:14at the bottom of the garden

00:05:15and he was by the hedge

00:05:17at the bottom of the garden

00:05:18calling the dog.

00:05:19And at that time,

00:05:20Mrs. Archard,

00:05:20was the door

00:05:21of the garden shed

00:05:22open or closed?

00:05:23It was standing open.

00:05:25I see.

00:05:26And then what happened?

00:05:27They both disappeared

00:05:28through the hedge.

00:05:30The accused

00:05:30and the dog?

00:05:31Yes.

00:05:32Thank you,

00:05:33Mrs. Archard.

00:05:34Oh, one moment.

00:05:35I believe my learned friend

00:05:37may have a few questions

00:05:38for you.

00:05:39Oh, dear.

00:05:39If you would feel

00:05:40more comfortable

00:05:41sitting down,

00:05:42Mrs. Archard,

00:05:43you'll find a seat

00:05:44in the witness box.

00:05:45Oh, thank you.

00:05:46I'm obliged to your honour.

00:05:48Your honour.

00:05:50Mrs. Archard,

00:05:52on the night

00:05:53or early morning

00:05:55of the alleged crime,

00:05:56what did you do

00:05:57after you'd seen

00:05:58the defendant

00:05:59and his dog

00:06:00in Mr. Sibley's garden?

00:06:02After they eventually

00:06:04disappeared

00:06:05through the hedge

00:06:05and out of the garden,

00:06:07I went back to bed.

00:06:08You went back to bed?

00:06:09Yes.

00:06:10You didn't ring the police

00:06:11or call Mr. Sibley

00:06:13to tell him

00:06:13what you'd seen?

00:06:14Not at the time, no.

00:06:15What was that?

00:06:16I wasn't sure

00:06:18what to do.

00:06:18I didn't like

00:06:19to disturb people

00:06:20at two o'clock

00:06:21in the morning.

00:06:22Was that possibly

00:06:23because you weren't

00:06:24sure exactly

00:06:25what you had seen?

00:06:26I saw well enough.

00:06:27It was a clear night.

00:06:29Indeed.

00:06:31You saw the defendant

00:06:32with his dog

00:06:33at the bottom

00:06:33of the garden?

00:06:34That's right.

00:06:35Is the shed

00:06:36at the bottom

00:06:37of the garden?

00:06:38No,

00:06:38at the top.

00:06:40So did you see

00:06:41the defendant

00:06:41near the shed?

00:06:42No.

00:06:43But was he carrying

00:06:44anything when you saw him?

00:06:46Not when I saw him,

00:06:47no.

00:06:48Mrs. Archer,

00:06:49what is beyond the hedge

00:06:50at the bottom

00:06:51of Mr. Sibley's garden?

00:06:53A footpath.

00:06:54A public footpath?

00:06:55Yes.

00:06:56And do the hedge

00:06:57and the footpath

00:06:58run along the bottom

00:06:59of all of the gardens

00:07:00on that side

00:07:01of Maitrey Avenue?

00:07:02Yes.

00:07:04Mrs. Archer,

00:07:05is it not perfectly

00:07:06possible

00:07:06that the dog

00:07:08came through the hedge

00:07:09into the long grass

00:07:10in Mr. Sibley's garden

00:07:12in pursuit of a rat

00:07:14or a hedgehog

00:07:15and that the defendant

00:07:17came through the hedge

00:07:19in pursuit of his dog,

00:07:21simply to retrieve the dog,

00:07:22in other words?

00:07:23I don't believe that.

00:07:24He was being furtive.

00:07:27Understandable,

00:07:27even in perfectly

00:07:28innocent circumstances,

00:07:29surely.

00:07:31I mean,

00:07:31you yourself have stated,

00:07:32and I quote,

00:07:33that you didn't like

00:07:34to disturb people

00:07:35at two o'clock

00:07:36in the morning.

00:07:37That's not the same thing

00:07:38at all.

00:07:38Isn't it?

00:07:40I suggest to you,

00:07:40Mrs. Archer,

00:07:41that you were inclined

00:07:42to draw the worst

00:07:44possible conclusion

00:07:45from what you saw.

00:07:46The obvious conclusion.

00:07:48Yes,

00:07:48but if it was so obvious

00:07:49at the time,

00:07:50why didn't you tell

00:07:50the police

00:07:51or Mr. Sibley at once?

00:07:52I told you.

00:07:53I was upset.

00:07:55You don't understand.

00:07:57It's easy to see afterwards

00:07:58what one should have done

00:07:59when something happens,

00:08:00but it's not always so easy

00:08:02when it happens,

00:08:03particularly when

00:08:04you're on your own

00:08:04and you haven't got in.

00:08:05Yes, I do understand that,

00:08:06Mrs. Archer.

00:08:07I understand perfectly.

00:08:10Would it be fair to say,

00:08:11then,

00:08:11that you felt threatened

00:08:14by the noises

00:08:16that drew your attention

00:08:17on the morning

00:08:18of the alleged crime?

00:08:19Yes.

00:08:20Yes, I did.

00:08:21Yes.

00:08:21Why was that exactly?

00:08:22Well,

00:08:23for obvious reasons,

00:08:24I thought it was an intruder.

00:08:26I mean,

00:08:27it happens all the time

00:08:28nowadays,

00:08:29doesn't it?

00:08:30Burglaries,

00:08:31mugging,

00:08:32it's dreadful.

00:08:33One has to be

00:08:33constantly alert.

00:08:35Yes,

00:08:35and being constantly alert,

00:08:37Mrs. Archer,

00:08:37you saw the defendant

00:08:39in Mr. Sibley's garden

00:08:40two days

00:08:41before the alleged crime.

00:08:43I was being a good neighbour.

00:08:44You're right,

00:08:44how busy about it?

00:08:46Yes,

00:08:46what time of day

00:08:48would that have been

00:08:49approximately,

00:08:50Mrs. Archer?

00:08:50Just before 11.

00:08:52In the morning?

00:08:52Yes.

00:08:54And what was he doing?

00:08:55I just said

00:08:56he was poking about

00:08:58in the shed.

00:08:59And the shed door

00:09:00was open?

00:09:01Yes.

00:09:02Now,

00:09:03think very carefully,

00:09:04Mrs. Archer.

00:09:05Was the defendant

00:09:06touching the shed door

00:09:08in any way?

00:09:11Did he,

00:09:12for example,

00:09:13have hold

00:09:13of the door hand?

00:09:15No.

00:09:16Now,

00:09:17you're absolutely

00:09:17certain of that,

00:09:18are you,

00:09:18Mrs. Archer?

00:09:19Yes,

00:09:20he was just

00:09:20standing there

00:09:21in the shed.

00:09:22In the shed,

00:09:23Mrs. Archer?

00:09:24In the doorway.

00:09:26Oh,

00:09:26so he wasn't

00:09:27in,

00:09:28he wasn't actually

00:09:28in the shed at all.

00:09:29He was looking in.

00:09:31Yes.

00:09:32What exactly

00:09:33did you say

00:09:34to the defendant?

00:09:34Can you remember?

00:09:35Yes,

00:09:36I just said,

00:09:37what do you want?

00:09:40Did you say

00:09:40anything else to him?

00:09:43Did you,

00:09:43in fact,

00:09:44say,

00:09:44go away,

00:09:45we don't want

00:09:46your sort around here.

00:09:48Go away

00:09:49or I'll call the police.

00:09:52Mrs. Archer?

00:09:53I may have said

00:09:54something like that.

00:09:55Yes,

00:09:55he was a trespasser.

00:09:57A trespasser?

00:09:58Or simply

00:09:59an innocent scrap dealer

00:10:00looking for business.

00:10:02I suggest to you,

00:10:03Mrs. Archer,

00:10:04that as on the night

00:10:05of the alleged crime,

00:10:06you were inclined

00:10:07to draw the worst

00:10:08possible conclusion

00:10:09from what you saw.

00:10:11He should have gone away

00:10:12when there was no reply

00:10:13at the front door.

00:10:14Mr. Sibley

00:10:15wasn't in.

00:10:16So you saw him

00:10:17knock at Mr. Sibley's

00:10:18front door

00:10:18before he went

00:10:19round to the back?

00:10:20Yes.

00:10:21I see.

00:10:22And did you later

00:10:22tell Mr. Sibley

00:10:23of this incident?

00:10:25Yes,

00:10:25that evening

00:10:26when he came home.

00:10:28Mrs. Archer,

00:10:29did the defendant

00:10:30knock at your front door

00:10:31before he went

00:10:32to Mr. Sibley's?

00:10:33Yes, he did.

00:10:34Was he, in fact,

00:10:34calling from house to house?

00:10:36Yes, he was,

00:10:37but I wasn't answering

00:10:38the door

00:10:38to the likes of him.

00:10:40How he had the nerve

00:10:41to knock at our doors

00:10:42after all the trouble

00:10:43there's been,

00:10:44I can't imagine.

00:10:45When you say trouble,

00:10:46Mrs. Archard,

00:10:47what exactly do you mean?

00:10:48With the tinkers.

00:10:50Now, are you referring

00:10:51to the travelers

00:10:52who had occupied

00:10:54the Follin's Marsh site

00:10:55at the end

00:10:56of Maytree Avenue?

00:10:57Tinkers,

00:10:58gypsies,

00:10:59travelers,

00:11:00call them what you like.

00:11:01He was one of them

00:11:02and they made our lives

00:11:03and they made our lives

00:11:03an absolute misery.

00:11:19Mr. Sibley,

00:11:20could you tell us

00:11:20what happened

00:11:21at your home

00:11:21about 6 a.m.

00:11:22on the morning

00:11:23of Friday,

00:11:23the 10th of September,

00:11:241982?

00:11:24Yes, I think so.

00:11:26I got up just before

00:11:276 in the morning

00:11:28and went downstairs

00:11:29to make myself

00:11:29an early morning pot

00:11:30of tea.

00:11:31Whilst I was filling

00:11:32the kettle,

00:11:32I noticed that the door

00:11:33to my garden shed

00:11:34was standing open.

00:11:36The kitchen window

00:11:36is over the sink.

00:11:37It looks out

00:11:37into the back garden.

00:11:38And were you surprised

00:11:39to see the shed door open?

00:11:40Yes, I was a bit

00:11:41because I distinctly

00:11:42remember shutting it

00:11:43later the previous evening.

00:11:44I'd been pruning the roses

00:11:45and I didn't put

00:11:46the secateurs away

00:11:47into the shed

00:11:47until about 8 o'clock.

00:11:48Did you see the copper

00:11:49cylinder in the shed

00:11:50at that time?

00:11:51Definitely, yes.

00:11:52And was it still there

00:11:53on the Friday morning?

00:11:54No, it was not.

00:11:55Whilst the kettle

00:11:56was boiling,

00:11:56I went out

00:11:57to have a look

00:11:57at the shed.

00:11:58Still in my pyjamas,

00:11:59actually.

00:12:00And it had gone.

00:12:01The cylinder, that is.

00:12:02And what did you do there?

00:12:04I phoned the police

00:12:04and made myself

00:12:05a pot of tea.

00:12:06Did the police arrive quickly?

00:12:07Yes, very quickly.

00:12:08No more than a minute.

00:12:09Most impressive.

00:12:10Two young officers

00:12:10in a police car.

00:12:12I gave them a statement,

00:12:13showed them the shed

00:12:14and off they went.

00:12:15Then about half an hour later,

00:12:16I got a phone call

00:12:17from the police station

00:12:18saying that they had found

00:12:19a copper cylinder

00:12:20and would I go down

00:12:20and identify it,

00:12:21which I did.

00:12:22May the copper cylinder

00:12:24be Exhibit 1, Your Honour.

00:12:25And can the witness

00:12:26be shown the exhibit, please?

00:12:34Is that the cylinder

00:12:35that you were shown

00:12:36at the police station,

00:12:37Mr. Sibby?

00:12:38Yes, it is.

00:12:38And it is definitely yours,

00:12:40the same cylinder

00:12:40that until the night

00:12:41of the alleged crime

00:12:42was kept in your garden shed?

00:12:44Definitely, yes.

00:12:45Will you return

00:12:46to the witness stand?

00:12:51Mr. Sibley,

00:12:52how do you identify

00:12:54the exhibit?

00:12:55I should have thought

00:12:56one copper cylinder

00:12:56was very much like another.

00:12:58Well, there's a small dab

00:12:59of red paint

00:13:00near the neck, Your Honour.

00:13:01I accidentally splashed it

00:13:02a couple of months ago

00:13:03and there are two small dents

00:13:05near the bottom.

00:13:07Yes, I see.

00:13:10Very well.

00:13:13Er, is it heavy?

00:13:15Bulky rather than heavy,

00:13:17Your Honour.

00:13:18Your Honour,

00:13:19if you please, Your Honour,

00:13:20as the portability

00:13:23of the exhibit

00:13:23may have a bearing

00:13:24on the case,

00:13:25I should be most grateful

00:13:26if members of the jury

00:13:27could be permitted

00:13:29to test the weight

00:13:30for themselves.

00:13:31Yes, I see no reason

00:13:32why not.

00:13:33So long as nobody

00:13:34injures himself.

00:13:37I'm glad, Your Honour.

00:13:45Mr. Perry?

00:13:56I have no further questions

00:13:57of this witness,

00:13:58Your Honour.

00:14:01Mr. Sibley,

00:14:02do you always get up

00:14:03as early as six in the morning?

00:14:05Not usually, no.

00:14:06Quite often in the summer months,

00:14:07though,

00:14:07best part of the day.

00:14:08Yes, indeed.

00:14:09Are you a light sleeper, then?

00:14:11Short rather than light.

00:14:13You didn't hear the noises

00:14:14emanating from your back

00:14:15garden earlier in the morning

00:14:16in question

00:14:17that so disturbed

00:14:18your neighbour,

00:14:18Mrs. Archer.

00:14:19My wife and I

00:14:20have a bedroom

00:14:20at the front of the house.

00:14:21We don't hear noise

00:14:22at the back,

00:14:23only at the front.

00:14:24Is there a lot of noise

00:14:25at the front of your house?

00:14:26Not normally.

00:14:27Maitrey Avenue

00:14:27is a nice, quiet cul-de-sac.

00:14:29But in August and September 1982,

00:14:31was there a lot of noise then?

00:14:32At times.

00:14:34Yes.

00:14:34What was causing the noise,

00:14:35Mr. Sibley?

00:14:36Basically,

00:14:36it tinkers lorries and cars

00:14:38roaring up and down

00:14:38at all hours.

00:14:39That's cars and lorries

00:14:40from the Travellers' encampment

00:14:42at the end of Maitrey Avenue

00:14:43on the ground

00:14:44known as Follin's Marsh.

00:14:45Yes, that's right.

00:14:46They arrived about mid-August

00:14:47just swarmed up

00:14:48Maitrey Avenue

00:14:49like an invading army.

00:14:50Thirty caravans,

00:14:51lorries,

00:14:52hordes of dogs

00:14:52and that was under

00:14:53peace and quiet.

00:14:54Everyone's got to live

00:14:55somewhere, you know.

00:14:56Violence in court.

00:14:57Would it be true

00:14:58to say then

00:14:59that you regarded

00:15:00the Travellers

00:15:00as a nuisance,

00:15:01Mr. Sibley?

00:15:02Your Honour,

00:15:02I cannot see

00:15:03that Mr. Sibley's feelings

00:15:04regarding the Travellers

00:15:05are of any relevance

00:15:06to this case.

00:15:07Your Honour,

00:15:07I respectfully submit

00:15:08that the witness's attitude

00:15:10toward the Travellers

00:15:11on the Follin's Marsh site

00:15:12is of great relevance

00:15:13to the case

00:15:13and will be shown

00:15:14to be sent.

00:15:15Very well, Mr. Bass.

00:15:16You may continue.

00:15:17I'm obliged, Your Honour.

00:15:19Mr. Sibley,

00:15:19would it be true

00:15:20to say that you were

00:15:21eager to see

00:15:22the Travellers

00:15:22leave Follin's Marsh?

00:15:24Yes, it would.

00:15:25Is that why you started

00:15:25a residence action group

00:15:27to have them removed?

00:15:28Well, it didn't take

00:15:29much starting, believe me.

00:15:30Everybody in the Avenue

00:15:31felt the same

00:15:32and so would you

00:15:33if they'd set up camp

00:15:34at the end of your street.

00:15:35It's like a nightmare.

00:15:36What, with their lorries

00:15:37roaring up and down,

00:15:38chewing up the road surface,

00:15:39their dumped cars,

00:15:40piles of rubbish,

00:15:40bonfires and the thieving,

00:15:42my copper cylinder

00:15:43wasn't the first thing

00:15:43to disappear since they arrived.

00:15:45Just answer the questions,

00:15:46please, Mr. Sibley,

00:15:47and refrain from

00:15:48making wild allegations.

00:15:50Are you acquainted

00:15:50with the defendant,

00:15:51Mr. Sibley?

00:15:53Well, not exactly acquainted.

00:15:54But you met him

00:15:55before today?

00:15:56Yes.

00:15:57He's one of the Tinkers,

00:15:58sorry,

00:15:59one of the Travellers

00:16:00that we've just been

00:16:01talking about.

00:16:02Can you tell us

00:16:02how you came to meet

00:16:03the defendant?

00:16:04Yes.

00:16:05A few days after

00:16:06they'd settled on

00:16:06Follin's Marsh,

00:16:07I visited their camp,

00:16:09myself and one

00:16:09or two other residents,

00:16:10to have a chat.

00:16:11A chat?

00:16:12Yes.

00:16:13We wanted to put

00:16:14our point of view

00:16:15and to see how long

00:16:16they intended upon staying.

00:16:17And you spoke

00:16:18to the defendant?

00:16:18Yes, he was their

00:16:19sort of spokesman.

00:16:20Oh, so you knew

00:16:21where he lived,

00:16:22which caravan was his?

00:16:24Yes.

00:16:25And was the chat

00:16:26a success?

00:16:28No, not really.

00:16:29It became quite evident

00:16:30that they had no intention

00:16:31of moving on.

00:16:31Well, not in the near future,

00:16:32anyway.

00:16:33And as a result

00:16:34of this apparent

00:16:35armed pass,

00:16:36your residence action

00:16:37group was set up?

00:16:38Yes.

00:16:40And meetings were held

00:16:42to discuss the situation?

00:16:43Yes.

00:16:44What form did these

00:16:45meetings take,

00:16:46Mr Sibley?

00:16:48Informal, mostly.

00:16:49On the green

00:16:49at the end of the cul-de-sac.

00:16:51And were they attended

00:16:51solely by local residents?

00:16:53Mostly, yes.

00:16:54But at one,

00:16:55we had our local MP,

00:16:57two local councillors,

00:16:58and this guy

00:16:59from the council's

00:17:01Ethnic Minorities Unit.

00:17:03He was there

00:17:04to put the traveller's

00:17:05point of view, of course.

00:17:05We pay his wages,

00:17:06they pay nothing,

00:17:07he puts their point of view.

00:17:08No wonder our rates

00:17:08are so high.

00:17:09Crazy.

00:17:10Just answer the questions,

00:17:11please, Mr Sibley.

00:17:14Mr Sibley,

00:17:15were you for some years

00:17:16an officer

00:17:17with a territorial arm?

00:17:18Your Honour,

00:17:19I must object.

00:17:20Surely,

00:17:21even if my learned friend

00:17:22is to be indulged

00:17:23in inquiring about

00:17:24Mr Sibley's feelings

00:17:25towards travellers,

00:17:26the witness's hobbies

00:17:28can hardly be of interest

00:17:29to this court.

00:17:30Mr Beth?

00:17:31If your Honour

00:17:32will bear with me,

00:17:32the relevance

00:17:33of this question

00:17:34will be shown.

00:17:35I very much hope so.

00:17:38Good Honour.

00:17:39Mr Sibley,

00:17:40were you once a member

00:17:41of the Territorial Army?

00:17:42Yes, I was.

00:17:43For how long?

00:17:44Fifteen years.

00:17:45And you attained

00:17:46the rank of Captain?

00:17:47That's right.

00:17:48When did you cease

00:17:49to be a member

00:17:49of the Territorials?

00:17:51Oh, about three years ago.

00:17:53I thought I was getting

00:17:54a bit old for that

00:17:54sort of thing,

00:17:55you know,

00:17:55getting a bit soft.

00:17:56A round of golf

00:17:57is more my style now.

00:17:59Yes.

00:18:01Mr Sibley,

00:18:01during your service

00:18:02with the Territorials,

00:18:03did you often take part

00:18:04in night operations,

00:18:06manoeuvres,

00:18:07special raids,

00:18:08that sort of thing,

00:18:08in the hours of darkness?

00:18:10Oh, sometimes

00:18:12at the weekend camps, yes.

00:18:13So you were also

00:18:14training to run and fight,

00:18:16carrying loads

00:18:16of 40 pounds or more?

00:18:18Yes.

00:18:21Yes.

00:18:22Mr Sibley,

00:18:23how did the cylinder

00:18:24get into your garden

00:18:25in the first place?

00:18:27How?

00:18:28Yes.

00:18:29Did you put it there?

00:18:30Well, of course I did.

00:18:31You carried it?

00:18:32Yes.

00:18:34Is there a path

00:18:35in your back garden,

00:18:36Mr Sibley?

00:18:37Path, yes.

00:18:38Leading from the house

00:18:39toward the bottom

00:18:40of the garden?

00:18:41Yes, that's right.

00:18:42It runs about

00:18:43two-thirds of the way down.

00:18:44Does it go past

00:18:45your garden shed?

00:18:46Yes, the shed's

00:18:47at the top,

00:18:47near the house.

00:18:48And the shed is

00:18:48right next to the path,

00:18:49is it?

00:18:51And you don't have to

00:18:51leave the path

00:18:52to open the shed door?

00:18:54That's right,

00:18:54you don't have to

00:18:55leave the path.

00:18:56If you go down it

00:18:57from the back door,

00:18:58there are rose bushes

00:18:59on your right

00:18:59and the shed

00:19:00is on your left.

00:19:01Mr Sibley,

00:19:02when you shut the shed door

00:19:03on the evening

00:19:04before the alleged crime,

00:19:05did you lock or bolt it?

00:19:07No, it hasn't got

00:19:08a lock or a bolt.

00:19:09Has it got a latch, then?

00:19:10No, it has a handle.

00:19:13An ordinary turning

00:19:14door handle.

00:19:15You turn the handle

00:19:16to open and shut the door.

00:19:19I see.

00:19:20If you don't shut

00:19:22the door properly,

00:19:22does it sometimes

00:19:23swing open again

00:19:24of its own accord?

00:19:25Well, it might do

00:19:26that occasionally,

00:19:27but I did shut it properly.

00:19:28And when it does

00:19:29swing open,

00:19:29does it do so sometimes

00:19:31in such a way

00:19:31as to block the garden path,

00:19:33if it was open

00:19:34at an angle of 90 degrees,

00:19:36say?

00:19:36Well, if it was open

00:19:37at 90 degrees,

00:19:38yes, it would block

00:19:40the path.

00:19:40It's a very narrow path.

00:19:41And when the door

00:19:41swings open,

00:19:42which way does it swing?

00:19:43Towards the house

00:19:44or towards the bottom

00:19:45of the garden?

00:19:47Well, towards the house.

00:19:49So, if the shed door

00:19:51was standing open

00:19:52at an angle of 90 degrees,

00:19:53a person approaching

00:19:54from the house

00:19:55would have to push it shut

00:19:57or partly shut

00:19:58to walk past the shed?

00:19:59Yes.

00:20:00Or even to look in the shed?

00:20:02Yes.

00:20:05Mr Sibley,

00:20:06can you tell us

00:20:08who owned the land

00:20:09known as Follins Marsh

00:20:10at the time

00:20:11of the travellers

00:20:11settled on it

00:20:12in August 1982?

00:20:15Fulchester Borough Council.

00:20:16Who owns it now?

00:20:18Causeway Developments.

00:20:19Causeway Developments.

00:20:20That is a property

00:20:21and construction company,

00:20:22is it not?

00:20:23That's right.

00:20:23House building.

00:20:24And are you a director

00:20:25of Causeway Developments,

00:20:26Mr Sibley?

00:20:27I am.

00:20:28And has site work

00:20:29now commenced

00:20:29with a view to building

00:20:3190 private dwellings

00:20:32on the Follins Marsh site?

00:20:34It has.

00:20:37Yes.

00:20:37Now, can we return

00:20:38to Maidtree Avenue,

00:20:40the residence meetings

00:20:41which were taking place

00:20:42in August and September 1982?

00:20:44Mr Sibley,

00:20:45do you recall attending

00:20:46such a meeting

00:20:47at about 6.30

00:20:48on the evening

00:20:48of the 9th of September?

00:20:50This is in effect

00:20:51the evening before

00:20:52the alleged crime took place.

00:20:54This, I believe,

00:20:55was the meeting

00:20:56to which the representatives

00:20:57of the Fulchester Council

00:20:59Ethnic Minorities Unit

00:21:00brought news

00:21:01of a change

00:21:02of Council policy

00:21:03toward the Travellers.

00:21:05Do you recall

00:21:05that meeting,

00:21:06Mr Sibley?

00:21:07Yes.

00:21:07Well, I ought to.

00:21:08It's the nearest thing

00:21:08to a riot

00:21:09I've ever been

00:21:09in the middle of.

00:21:10You're saying

00:21:10the meeting

00:21:10was a stormy one.

00:21:11It certainly was.

00:21:12Can you tell us why?

00:21:14Well, under the law,

00:21:16the Council

00:21:16were perfectly entitled

00:21:17to evict the Travellers

00:21:18without further ado.

00:21:20And in the past,

00:21:20when these sort of people

00:21:21have landed up

00:21:22in Fulchester,

00:21:22they've been sent packing.

00:21:24Now, here was this guy

00:21:26standing there

00:21:27telling us

00:21:27that the Council

00:21:28weren't going to evict.

00:21:30For humanitarian reasons,

00:21:32Travellers who behaved themselves

00:21:34were to be allowed

00:21:35to remain on Council

00:21:36proper tinted

00:21:36until it was urgently

00:21:37needed for development.

00:21:39So you,

00:21:40the eviction

00:21:41you and your fellow residents

00:21:43have been pressing for

00:21:44was not now to materialise.

00:21:46You were stuck

00:21:47with Follens Marsh

00:21:48Travellers,

00:21:49provided they behaved themselves.

00:21:51Yes, that's right.

00:21:52The Council's view

00:21:53was that we were

00:21:54exaggerating the nuisance.

00:21:56Needless to say,

00:21:57nobody on the Council

00:21:57lives in Maytree Avenue.

00:21:59Mr. Sibley,

00:21:59at this stormy meeting,

00:22:00did you utter the words

00:22:02there's more than one way

00:22:03to skin a rabbit?

00:22:06Mr. Sibley?

00:22:09Yes, I did.

00:22:11What exactly did you mean

00:22:12by that remark?

00:22:14Well, I was trying

00:22:15to defuse

00:22:16a rather dangerous situation.

00:22:18Well, everybody

00:22:18was going bananas

00:22:19saying that the Council

00:22:21had stabbed us in the back.

00:22:23There was a lot of wild talk

00:22:24about gathering an army together

00:22:26and going to invade

00:22:27the Travellers' camp

00:22:27and driving them off.

00:22:28And you didn't agree with that?

00:22:30Certainly not.

00:22:31What, take the tinkers

00:22:32and their dogs

00:22:32on on their own ground?

00:22:33No thanks.

00:22:34So what exactly

00:22:35did you mean

00:22:36when you said

00:22:36there's more than one way

00:22:38to skin a rabbit?

00:22:39I have told you

00:22:40I was just trying

00:22:40to cool tempers a bit

00:22:41to stop people

00:22:42from doing anything stupid.

00:22:43By suggesting

00:22:44that there were

00:22:44other means

00:22:45of achieving

00:22:46the removal

00:22:46of the Travellers

00:22:47than by brute force?

00:22:48Yes.

00:22:49What other means,

00:22:51Mr. Sibley?

00:22:52Well, I've no idea.

00:22:56It was just something to say.

00:22:58I suggest to you

00:22:59that it was more than

00:22:59something to say.

00:23:00I suggest that you

00:23:01were prepared

00:23:02to take the law

00:23:03into your own hands

00:23:04in a very different way.

00:23:05Your Honour.

00:23:06Yes, Mr. Padding.

00:23:07Mr. Bass,

00:23:09I trust you have considered

00:23:10the possible consequences

00:23:11this line of questioning

00:23:13may have for the defendant?

00:23:15I have, Your Honour.

00:23:15that you intend

00:23:17to continue?

00:23:19With Your Honour's permission.

00:23:22Very well, Mr. Bass.

00:23:24I suggest to you,

00:23:26Mr. Sibley,

00:23:26that the sense of outrage

00:23:28you felt as a resident,

00:23:29compounded by your frustration

00:23:31at the possible delay

00:23:32in the realisation

00:23:33of your financial interest

00:23:35in the Follens Marsh site,

00:23:36prompted you

00:23:37to attempt to discredit

00:23:38the Travellers

00:23:39by unfair means.

00:23:41I suggest that the

00:23:42copper cylinder

00:23:43was not stolen

00:23:44from your garden shed

00:23:45at all.

00:23:45but that you

00:23:47attempted to

00:23:48enter the Travellers' encampment

00:23:49by stealth,

00:23:50placed the cylinder

00:23:51under the defendant's lorry

00:23:53and later called the police

00:23:54knowing full well

00:23:55where the blame

00:23:56for the alleged crime

00:23:57would fall.

00:23:58No further questions,

00:23:59Your Honour.

00:24:12The case of the Queen

00:24:13and Kiernan

00:24:14will be resumed tomorrow.

00:24:15In the Crown Court.

00:24:16In the Crown Court.

00:24:46The case you're about to see is fictional, but the procedure is legally accurate.

00:24:53The characters are played by actors, but the jury is selected from members of the general public.

00:24:58Joseph Kiernan, a travelling scrap dealer, stands accused of stealing a copper cylinder, the property of Gordon Sibley.

00:25:05No further questions, Your Honor.

00:25:07In cross-examination, Defence Council has suggested that the alleged crime was fabricated.

00:25:12Now the prosecution re-examined Sibley.

00:25:16Mr. Sibley, what do you say to my learned friend's suggestion that you knowingly fabricated the crime on which this case is brought by,

00:25:26I suppose the word would be, planting your copper cylinder under the defendant's lorry?

00:25:31Ridiculous.

00:25:31You deny it?

00:25:33Absolutely.

00:25:34In attempting to establish a motive for this extraordinary alleged escapade on your part,

00:25:40my learned friend has drawn attention to the fact that, in addition to considering the travellers on Follin's Marsh to be a nuisance,

00:25:46you had a vested interest, a financial interest, in seeing them vacate the site as soon as possible.

00:25:52Do you deny such an interest?

00:25:53I had a financial interest in the site, certainly. It was common knowledge locally.

00:25:57When you say it's common knowledge locally, Mr. Sibley, what exactly do you mean?

00:26:02Well, Causeway Developments have been negotiating with Follin's Marsh site for the past five years.

00:26:08Prior to that, it was marked down for industrial development.

00:26:11Funnily enough, it was pressure from the local residents that got the planning use changed to private housing.

00:26:17They were extremely chuffed when I moved into Matry Avenue and they found out that I was connected with the firm that was going to build the houses.

00:26:22So there was nothing secret or sinister about your financial interest in the site?

00:26:27Certainly not.

00:26:29And was a protracted occupation of the site by the travellers likely to jeopardise or even delay Causeway Development's plans?

00:26:37Well, certainly not jeopardise.

00:26:39The deal had gone far too far for the council to back out now.

00:26:43Delay? Well, perhaps if the council had dragged their heels on the last formalities, so what?

00:26:48We'd been waiting for five years. A few more weeks wasn't going to make any difference.

00:26:51So you deny that you had an ulterior motive in wanting the travellers moved on quickly?

00:26:58I wanted them moved on for the same reason as everybody else.

00:27:01Their anti-social behaviour.

00:27:03But you at no time took the law into your own hands in any way?

00:27:07No.

00:27:09On the contrary, I believe in the process of law.

00:27:12Like any decent citizen.

00:27:15Thank you, Mr. Sibley.

00:27:18I solemnly swear that the evidence I shall give should be the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth.

00:27:23John Franklin, Constable 1022, Fulchester, West Division, Your Honor.

00:27:27Now, Constable Franklin, were you one of the...

00:27:29Before you begin, Mr. Perry, I think in view of the extreme heat in here today, we might dispense with these.

00:27:35Oh.

00:27:36Thank you, Your Honor.

00:27:38Your Honor.

00:27:38Now, Constable Franklin, were you one of the police officers who attended Mr. Sibley's house in Maytree Avenue on the morning of Friday the 10th of September 1982?

00:27:51I was.

00:27:51I was on mobile patrol with Police Constable Baker when we received a radio call from the station directing us to go to 15 Maytree Avenue.

00:27:57And what time was it when you received that call?

00:27:596.05am precisely.

00:28:00And you went straight to the address stated?

00:28:02Yes, we arrived there at 6.06am.

00:28:04Could you please tell the court what happened when you got there?

00:28:06I took a statement from Mr. Sibley, who confirmed the theft of a 36-gallon capacity copper cylinder from his garden shed.

00:28:13I also expected the shed and garden for possible evidence.

00:28:16And did you find any?

00:28:18Not much, sir.

00:28:18The shed door was standing open and the long grass at the bottom of the garden was trampled.

00:28:22Other than that, there was nothing.

00:28:23So, what did you do there?

00:28:25I reported to the station by radio to request the assistance of a fingerprint expert to carry out a routine examination of the shed door, etc.

00:28:31Your Honour, a statement has been provided by the forensic scientists concerned, and with your permission, that statement will be read to the court on the completion of Constable Franklin's evidence.

00:28:42Mr. Bass?

00:28:44No objections, Your Honour.

00:28:46Defence does not dispute the fact of the fingerprint evidence, only its interpretation.

00:28:52I'm obliged, Your Honour.

00:28:54So, Constable Franklin, having reported back to the police station by radio, what did you do then?

00:28:59Constable Baker and I drove to the travellers' camp on Follin's Marsh.

00:29:01For what purpose?

00:29:02To pursue our inquiries.

00:29:04In respect of the copper cylinder?

00:29:05Yes, in view of local circumstances, it seemed a sensible place to start.

00:29:09I see.

00:29:10And could you tell the court exactly what happened when you arrived at the travellers' camp?

00:29:14May I refer to my notebook, Your Honour?

00:29:16When were your notes made?

00:29:17When I arrived at the station about 20 minutes after the incident.

00:29:20Your Honour?

00:29:21Yes, sir.

00:29:23Thank you, Your Honour.

00:29:23We drove onto the Follin's Marsh site at 6.13am.

00:29:32As we approached the travellers' caravans, I saw the accused crouch beside a lorry.

00:29:37He had hold of one end of a copper cylinder, which was partly hidden under the lorry.

00:29:41We drove up.

00:29:42I got out of the patrol car and the accused stood up.

00:29:45I asked him if he had a receipt for the cylinder to ascertain if it was his property.

00:29:49And did he reply?

00:29:51Yes, he did, sir.

00:29:53He said, take it.

00:29:54It's nothing to do with me.

00:29:56I then retrieved the copper cylinder from under the lorry, ascertained that it fitted the description

00:29:59provided by Mr. Sibley, and cautioned the accused.

00:30:02Constable Franklin, is the copper cylinder, Exhibit 1 here, that which you found in the accused's

00:30:07possession on the morning of the 10th of September, 1982?

00:30:10It is, sir.

00:30:11And having cautioned the accused, what did you do then?

00:30:13Asked him to accompany us to the police station to assist with further inquiries.

00:30:16Which he did.

00:30:17Yes, sir.

00:30:18And subsequently, he was charged with the theft of the copper cylinder?

00:30:21Yes, sir.

00:30:22Thank you, constable.

00:30:30Constable Franklin, you've been commendably precise concerning the times of events as they

00:30:36affected you on the day of the alleged crime.

00:30:38I'd like to be precise, sir.

00:30:40I'm pleased to hear it.

00:30:42If we could just look at those times again, though.

00:30:45You say you received a call directing you to Mr. Sibley's house at 6.05am, and arrived

00:30:50there at 6.06am, just one minute later.

00:30:53A remarkably swift response, surely.

00:30:56We were in a patrol car, sir.

00:30:59Nevertheless, you must have been fairly close at hand when you received the call.

00:31:02Can you remember exactly where you were?

00:31:04We were at the junction of Matry Avenue and Beaumont Road, sir.

00:31:06And was that a fortunate coincidence, or were you normally at that point in your patrol

00:31:10as early in the day?

00:31:12Patrol patterns are arranged to suit local circumstances, sir.

00:31:14Local circumstances?

00:31:16And at that time, did local circumstances mean the traveler's encampment on Follin's Marsh?

00:31:22It's a normal practice to keep an eye on such places, sir, yes.

00:31:25Just routine.

00:31:26Most of the travelers have lorries and experiences shown that they sometimes need reminding of

00:31:30the legal requirements regarding road-worthiness and documentation.

00:31:33So, in other words, you were there to carry out spot checks on lorries and drivers as they

00:31:36left the Follin's Marsh camp?

00:31:38Random checks, sir, yes.

00:31:39You were lying awake, Your Honor.

00:31:41I would just like to ask whether my learned friend is suggesting that Constable Franklin was

00:31:45doing anything wrong in lying in wait, as he chooses to put it.

00:31:51Well, Mr. Bent?

00:31:52I shan't perceive the...

00:31:54You arrived at Mr. Sibley's house at 6.06 precisely, and yet seven minutes later, at

00:32:036.13, you were entering the traveler's encampment, and swiftness appears to be your trademark.

00:32:09Isn't seven minutes an unusually short time to spend at the scene of an alleged crime?

00:32:14Depends entirely on the crime, sir.

00:32:16Mr. Sibley's statement was straightforward, and there seemed no useful purpose in hanging

00:32:19about.

00:32:19You didn't approach Mr. Sibley's neighbors, Mrs. Archard, for example, to ask if they'd

00:32:24seen or heard anything suspicious?

00:32:26I thought it a bit early to knock up the neighbors, sir.

00:32:28But not too early to knock up the travelers?

00:32:30We did find the cylinder, sir.

00:32:33I'll take your point, Constable.

00:32:35You found the cylinder.

00:32:39But before you left Mr. Sibley's house, did you have any evidence to suggest that you

00:32:42would find it in the traveler's camp?

00:32:44No hard evidence, sir, but in the absence of hard evidence, it seemed a reasonable point

00:32:49to start investigations.

00:32:50Prompt action usually offers the best hope of recovering stolen property.

00:32:54Prompt indeed.

00:32:55I suggest to you, Constable, that you jump to the conclusion that the travelers were responsible

00:32:59for the alleged crime and were delighted to do so.

00:33:01Really, Your Honor?

00:33:02Mr. Bass, I have already had to warn you of the serious consequences of your line of questioning

00:33:08of an earlier witness.

00:33:09Are you now suggesting that Constable Franklin's actions were prompted by improper motives?

00:33:14No, Your Honor, but it is necessary to make it clear that he, like others in the police

00:33:20force and, regrettably, society as a whole, is instinctively predisposed to believe the

00:33:25worst of the traveler community.

00:33:27For because of that predisposition, Constable Franklin behaved exactly as Mr. Sibley hoped he

00:33:33would.

00:33:33With respect to Your Honor, if my loaded friend is suggesting that the witness acted out of

00:33:37prejudice towards the travelers, I would submit he is imputing improper conduct.

00:33:41I am inclined to agree, Mr. Perry.

00:33:44Mr. Bass, if you are allowed to continue in this vein, I trust you will be able to prove

00:33:47the predisposition you allege?

00:33:49Of course, you are an honor.

00:33:50I'm obliged for the opportunity.

00:33:53Constable Franklin, in your evidence, you said, and I quote,

00:33:56I got out of the patrol car and the accused stood up.

00:34:00I asked him if he had a receipt for the cylinder to ascertain if it was his property.

00:34:05Now, presumably, if the defendant had been able to produce a receipt, you would have accepted

00:34:09that the cylinder was his rightful property.

00:34:12Yes, sir, I would.

00:34:12But I put it to you, Constable, that most law-abiding citizens would be hard put to it

00:34:17to produce a receipt for every piece of furniture or personal effect they claim to own.

00:34:22I accept that, sir.

00:34:23And yet, is it not true that you yourself took part in a large-scale police raid on the

00:34:28Follensmarsh site in the early hours of Friday the 3rd of September, only seven days before

00:34:34the alleged incident, during which caravans were searched, including that of the defendant,

00:34:39and occupants were required to produce receipts for various items of property?

00:34:45Yes, sir.

00:34:46And were you the officer responsible for searching the defendant's own caravan on that occasion?

00:34:50I was.

00:34:51And is it not true that no charges against the defendant or any other traveller resulted

00:34:56from that operation?

00:34:56With great respect, Your Honour, I have shown great patience during this cross-examination,

00:35:02but might I be permitted at this stage to ask my learned friend just where it is leading?

00:35:07Well, Mr Bass, does the outcome of the police operation to which you refer have any material

00:35:12bearing on the case?

00:35:13Your Honour, I submit that such raids and the demand to see receipts are a form of harassment,

00:35:19just as repeated spot checks on travellers' vehicles are a form of harassment.

00:35:24I submit that they indicate a predisposition to believe the worst of the travellers.

00:35:28I see.

00:35:28Constable Franklin, was the police raid prompted by any specific motive?

00:35:32There had been a marked increase in petty crime in the district since the arrival of the travellers,

00:35:36Your Honour.

00:35:36Your response was considered necessary.

00:35:38Aye, we get the bloody blame for everything!

00:35:41Violence in court!

00:35:42But the raid proved fruitless.

00:35:44It did, Your Honour.

00:35:45He broke one of me best bloody china vows!

00:35:48Violence in court!

00:35:49It would seem that we have one or two other hotheads in court today besides my own.

00:35:53Might I suggest that they go outside for a few moments and cool off?

00:35:57I'm sorry, Your Honour.

00:35:58It was not you I was getting at.

00:36:00Nevertheless, if you wish to stay, you must be quiet.

00:36:04Now, did you wish to pursue this avenue any further, Mr Bass?

00:36:08No, Your Honour.

00:36:09Then please proceed with your cross-examination.

00:36:12Your Honour.

00:36:13Constable, now.

00:36:13And a little closer to events on the day of the alleged crime, if you wouldn't mind, Mr Bass.

00:36:20Now, when you first saw the defendant crouch by the lorry,

00:36:24was he putting the cylinder under the lorry or pulling it out?

00:36:27My impression was that he was putting it under the lorry.

00:36:30I put it to you, Constable, that it's perfectly possible that the defendant,

00:36:33coming out of his caravan, had been surprised to see the copper cylinder under his lorry

00:36:37and was in the process of investigating its presence when you and Constable Baker arrived on the scene.

00:36:43My impression was that he was putting it under the lorry,

00:36:45that he saw us coming and was trying to hide the cylinder before we saw it.

00:36:48Your impression?

00:36:50You mean you're not certain?

00:36:53I wouldn't swear to it, or no, sir, no.

00:36:55Oh, I see.

00:36:59Constable Franklin, after you'd cautioned the defendant

00:37:01and asked him to accompany you to the police station,

00:37:04did you say anything else to him?

00:37:06No, sir.

00:37:07Did you say nothing to him when you were all in the patrol car on your way to the police station?

00:37:12No, sir.

00:37:12Did you not in fact say, got you this time, jippo?

00:37:16No, sir, I did not.

00:37:28So, Constable Franklin, do you deny saying, got you this time, jippo?

00:37:33I do, sir.

00:37:34Do you ever use the expression, jippo?

00:37:37Not when addressing members of the public, sir.

00:37:39Oh, I see.

00:37:43Thank you, Constable.

00:37:44No further questions.

00:37:46Do you wish to re-examine, Mr. Perry?

00:37:48Your Honor, yes.

00:37:50Constable Franklin, you visited the Follens Marsh encampment on more than one occasion.

00:37:55Were there a lot of dogs there?

00:37:57Yes, sir.

00:37:58A dozen, at least.

00:37:59Were they leashed or unleashed?

00:38:02Mostly unleashed.

00:38:03What was the reaction of the dogs to a stranger, a policeman, for example, entering the encampment?

00:38:08They made a lot of noise.

00:38:09They gave warning of your approach.

00:38:11They certainly did, sir.

00:38:12He couldn't set foot on the site without starting one off, and then the rest would start barking, too.

00:38:15Not an easy place to enter unnoticed, there.

00:38:19No, sir.

00:38:20I have no further questions of this witness, Your Honor.

00:38:23May he be released?

00:38:24Thank you, Constable Franklin.

00:38:26You may go about your duties.

00:38:32Your Honor, as mentioned earlier, I should at this stage, with your permission, like to submit the written evidence of Mr. Howard Sadler,

00:38:39the forensic scientist who conducted fingerprint tests in connection with this case.

00:38:43Does the clerk of the court have this statement?

00:38:45I believe so, Your Honor.

00:38:47I have, Your Honor.

00:38:48Very well.

00:38:49Members of the jury, you are now going to have read to you the evidence of an expert witness.

00:38:55It's being read to you because he's not in dispute, and it would simply be a waste of public money to bring him here in order to read his own statement.

00:39:01Nevertheless, you should treat this evidence as of equal importance as evidence given in person.

00:39:09Statement of Howard Sadler, BSC, employed by the Home Office as forensic analyst at the Fulchester Laboratory from April 1977 to date.

00:39:20I have examined fingerprint samples found on the 36-gallon capacity copper cylinder.

00:39:25In this comparison of rich characteristics, 11 points of similarity were discovered.

00:39:30In my professional opinion, this incident of similarities indicates beyond doubt that Joseph Michael Keenan's fingerprints

00:39:36and those found on the copper cylinder and the door handle of the garbage shed are the same.

00:39:41Signed, Howard Sadler, 3rd of January, 1983.

00:39:46Your Honor, that concludes the case for the prosecution.

00:39:50Thank you, Mr. Perry.

00:39:52Mr. Bass?

00:39:52I call the defendant, Joseph Michael Keenan.

00:40:01I swear, boy, almighty God, the evidence I give should be the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth.

00:40:06Come on, Joe.

00:40:09Before you start, Mr. Bass, if the defendant would like to take off his jacket, he's perfectly welcome to do so.

00:40:15Ah, thanks, Your Honor, now, but I'm fine.

00:40:17Honest, honest.

00:40:18The kindness is much appreciated, Your Honor.

00:40:21Your name is Joseph Michael Keenan.

00:40:23Yeah, it is, sir.

00:40:24And you're currently residing at Canal Road, Walsall, Staffordshire.

00:40:28Ah, no, sir.

00:40:29No, we was towed off there in Wanda.

00:40:31I'm sorry?

00:40:32We're towed off, Your Honor.

00:40:33The trailer's evicted.

00:40:34Oh, I see.

00:40:37Um, and where are you, uh, currently living now, Mr. Keenan?

00:40:40Uh, Stapleton Street, Brahmsgrove, sir.

00:40:42It's, uh, it's a bit of land out there, be the railway, you know.

00:40:44Ah, and at the time of the alleged offence in September 1982?

00:40:48Uh, Follins, Marsh, uh, Folchester, sir, yeah.

00:40:51We, we, we pulled on there about the middle of August, like, in August.

00:40:55You and your family are, uh, in fact, itinerant, that is to say, travelling people, moving from, living in caravans, moving from town to town and site to site around the country.

00:41:05Yeah, I suppose that's the size of it, sir.

00:41:07How do you make a living, Mr. Keenan?

00:41:09Oh, anything in a small lorry.

00:41:11Could you be a little more specific, please, Mr. Keenan?

00:41:14Uh, well, your honour, uh, tarmacin', three-loppin', car-brakin', rubbage-cleardins', scrap.

00:41:22Oh, I can turn me hand-to-mouth things, sir.

00:41:24I envy your versatility.

00:41:26Please continue, Mr. Keenan.

00:41:28Mr. Keenan, could you cast your mind back to September 1982?

00:41:32That's Wednesday the 8th of September, in fact.

00:41:34That's two days before the alleged crime.

00:41:37Did you knock at the front door of 15 Maytree Avenue?

00:41:40I did, sir.

00:41:40Sure, I knocked on them all.

00:41:41I was collecting scrap, you know.

00:41:43Now, when you were calling from house to house, do you always knock at the front door, do you?

00:41:47Mostly, but, uh, well, in summer, sometimes I go around to the back, you know.

00:41:53Why is that?

00:41:54Well, oftentimes people is in their gardens, you see, so they don't hear, you know.

00:41:57So you go around to the back to make yourself known, you know.

00:42:01And is that what happened to Mr. Sibley's house?

00:42:03That's number 15.

00:42:04Yeah, it is, sir.

00:42:05I got no reply at the front, so I skedaddle around the back, you know.

00:42:08He was simply looking for the occupants.

00:42:10Yeah, I was, sir.

00:42:11What did you do when you arrived at the back of Mr. Sibley's house?

00:42:15Well, there was no one in the garden, you see, but the door of the shed was open.

00:42:20So, well, I thought, well, maybe there was someone in the shed, you know.

00:42:22So I walked down to the shed, pushed the door to to get past, and looked inside.

00:42:28In pushing the shed door to, did you take hold of the handle?

00:42:31I did, sir.

00:42:32No other part of the door?

00:42:34Oh, no, sir, no, just a handle.

00:42:35Mr. Kiernan, did you, in fact, see a copper cylinder in the shed?

00:42:40Yeah, I did, Your Honor.

00:42:41Yeah, it was stuck in a corner on top of a pile of hell carpet, sir, you know.

00:42:45Yes, yes, yes, I see.

00:42:48And what happened while you were looking into the shed, Mr. Kiernan?

00:42:51Well, that one next door started roaring at...

00:42:54Er, the lady next door started shouting and roaring at me, sir.

00:42:58The lady who gave evidence earlier, Mrs. Archer?

00:43:01Yeah, that's right, sir.

00:43:01What did she say to you?

00:43:03Well, she told me to clear it out, you know.

00:43:05And you went?

00:43:06Oh, yeah. I wasn't looking for no troubling.

00:43:10Did you leave the shed door open?

00:43:12I did, sir. I left it exactly like I found it, you know.

00:43:15What did you do then?

00:43:16Well, I went on down the road to number one, and then I drove me lorry home.

00:43:21To Follins Marsh?

00:43:23Yes, sir.

00:43:23Now, Mrs. Archer has testified that she saw you in Mr. Sibley's garden again at two o'clock in the morning on Friday the 10th of September.

00:43:32That's two days later.

00:43:34Do you deny that you were in the garden at that time?

00:43:38Well, can you explain, then...

00:43:40Could the defendant speak up, please?

00:43:41No, no, Your Honor. I was in the garden right enough.

00:43:45Yes, but can you explain why you were in the garden?

00:43:47Oh, you see, I'd gone in at the pops. That old dog of mine.

00:43:52He's the devil's own son when it comes to the rats, for you know.

00:43:54Well, and how did your dog come to be in Mr. Sibley's garden?

00:43:59Well, we was walking on the path behind the houses, me and the old dog, like.

00:44:04And all of a sudden, he takes off through the fence,

00:44:06rowing and yapping and barking, fit to raise the dead.

00:44:10Now, he's a good old dog, so you know.

00:44:12Once he gets the smell of a rat, there's nothing I can do with him, you know.

00:44:15So what did you do?

00:44:16Well, I went through the fence after him.

00:44:19In an attempt to quiet and retrieve him?

00:44:22Huh. We'd had enough trouble with the buffers already.

00:44:26We didn't want pops waking up the whole neighborhood, you know.

00:44:30Pardon my ignorance, Mr. Kiernan, but who or what are the buffers?

00:44:35Buffers, Your Honor? Well, uh, gorges, you know.

00:44:39Your Honor, I believe the term buffer or gorgy is used by travelling people to denote non-travelling people.

00:44:47Is that correct, Mr. Kiernan?

00:44:48Yeah, that's right, sir.

00:44:48Yeah, I see. Not simply old buffers like me.

00:44:53Indeed not, Your Honor.

00:44:55Did you know, before you scrambled through the hedge, whose garden your dog had, in fact, entered?

00:45:00Ah, not at all, sir. I mean, it's a good, thick, tall hedge.

00:45:03You got no sight of the other side.

00:45:05Did you recognise the garden once you were in it?

00:45:07Sure, I wasn't that interested, sir.

00:45:08All I was interested in was getting old pops out of there.

00:45:11Yeah, but the grasp of the hedge was long, like Mr. Sibley's garden, and the door of the shed was standing open.

00:45:21I noticed that.

00:45:21Did you come near the shed?

00:45:23I did not, sir.

00:45:24No.

00:45:25Now, in the end, I just gave pops a right old kick up the back side, sir, and dragged him out.

00:45:32He only came because he'd lost a rat.

00:45:34Never used to lose him.

00:45:39Getting old like the rest of us, I suppose.

00:45:41Yes, indeed. Now, once you were back on the public footpath, what did you do then?

00:45:45Well, I, uh, I went home to me trailer.

00:45:48Your caravan?

00:45:49To me caravan, yeah. Yeah, and I got into bed, and I went to sleep.

00:45:52What time did you wake up?

00:45:54Oh, a little after six.

00:45:57And then what happened?

00:45:58Well, I went outside to get a breath of two of fresh air, and, um, and say hello to pops.

00:46:03Then I strolled over to the lorry, and then I saw the copper tank, like.

00:46:08The copper cylinder alleged to have been stolen from Mr. Sibley's garden shed?

00:46:11Yes, sir. It was lying there under me lorry.

00:46:14Honest to God, I was never so surprised since Katie here produced the two twins.

00:46:18And what did you do?

00:46:19Well, I, uh, I bent down to pull it out and have a proper look at it, like.

00:46:24Yeah.

00:46:26Then, then the boys in blue rolled up.

00:46:28They says to me, that thing's been stolen from Mr. Sibley's yard.

00:46:32And I says, well, take it. It's got nothing to do with me.

00:46:35Anyway, I couldn't have done it on account of me back, sir.

00:46:38Oh, you suffer from back trouble. Is that not correct, Mr. McKinnon?

00:46:41That's right, sir. And I, I just put it out, out again, just that, that Thursday morning.

00:46:45So, sure, I'm always doing it.

00:46:47And there was no way I could have luged that copper tank back to me trailer, sir.

00:46:51And how did the police officers react to you when you protested your innocence?

00:46:55Ha, ha, they laughed, sir.

00:46:57Oh, they were highly delighted.

00:46:59They'd stopped me lorry twice and found nothing wrong with it.

00:47:02And the trailer was clean as a whistle in the raid a week or two before.

00:47:05Ah, yeah. They were well pleased with themselves.

00:47:09Mr. Kinnon, you heard Police Constable Franklin deny saying,

00:47:13got you this time, jipper, when you were in the police car.

00:47:16Well, I mean, he would, wouldn't he?

00:47:17I mean, it's only my word against his.

00:47:21Ah, he was quite polite, really.

00:47:23They usually cause a hell of a lot worse than that, I can tell you.

00:47:26Thank you, Mr. Kinnon.

00:47:28If you would just stay there, I'm sure my learned friend has a few questions to put to you.

00:47:33If it please, Your Honour, before proceeding to cross-examine Mr. Kinnon,

00:47:36there's a point of procedure I should like to raise in the absence of the jury.

00:47:40Very well, Mr. Perry.

00:47:42Members of the jury, there's a matter of law to be discussed with which you need not bother yourselves.

00:47:47Perhaps you'd like to stretch your legs for a few moments.

00:48:05The case of the Queen and Kinnon will be concluded tomorrow in the Crown Court.

00:48:17The case you're about to see is fictional, but the procedure is legally accurate.

00:48:44The characters are played by actors, but the jury is selected from members of the general public.

00:48:49Today, the case of the Queen against Kinnon will be concluded,

00:48:52and the jury will be retiring to reach their own unrehearsed verdict.

00:48:57Now, Mr. Perry.

00:48:58Your Honour, during the course of this trial, an attack has been made by my learned friend

00:49:09on the motives of a police officer, and further, the suggestion has been made to another witness,

00:49:14Mr. Sibley, that the entire case, in fact, rests on an attempt by Mr. Sibley

00:49:18to pervert the course of justice.

00:49:21Your Honour, I submit that it will be hard to imagine a clearer example of an imputation,

00:49:24and therefore I feel I must apply for permission to cross-examine the accused

00:49:28in the matter of his previous convictions.

00:49:31As I fully accept your reasons for making your application, Mr. Perry,

00:49:36I've given the matter some thought, and I've looked at the accused's record.

00:49:41I find that the latest conviction, which in any case was for a minor traffic violation

00:49:46and not theft, was in 1976.

00:49:50The latest of his three convictions for petty theft was in 1972,

00:49:53and more than 10 years ago.

00:49:55Prior to that, we have a couple of breaches of the piece.

00:50:00In view of his recent good record, therefore,

00:50:02I've decided in my discretion that it would not be right

00:50:05to allow cross-examination on previous convictions.

00:50:11I'm afraid your application is refused.

00:50:19Mr. Perry?

00:50:22Mr. Cairnon, you're a family man.

00:50:26Are you not?

00:50:27Yeah, I am, sir.

00:50:28How many children do you have?

00:50:31Seven at the last count, sir.

00:50:32Mr. Cairnon, you've testified that you make a living by doing various jobs

00:50:36involving the use of a small lorry, scrap dealing, for example.

00:50:40Now, do these various, presumably casual, jobs

00:50:43provide the sole means of support for you and your family?

00:50:46Come again, sir?

00:50:48Do you earn enough money to support your family?

00:50:51Ah, well, that depends.

00:50:52I mean, in a good week, yeah, more than enough.

00:50:54And in a bad week?

00:50:56Well, hardly.

00:50:57And how do you manage them?

00:50:59Well, we're under Social Security, sir, you know.

00:51:02Oh, really?

00:51:03Oh, yeah.

00:51:04Well, we're entitled to the family allowance and stuff like that, you know.

00:51:07And what about sickness benefit?

00:51:09Did you go to a doctor about the bad back

00:51:12that you were unfortunately suffering from

00:51:14in the night of the alleged crime?

00:51:15I don't have much trouble with doctors, sir.

00:51:18So there is no way of verifying

00:51:20exactly how bad your back actually was?

00:51:23In any event, we've heard that it didn't prevent you

00:51:25from dragging your dog from Sir Sibley's garden

00:51:27or from bending down beside your lorry

00:51:30either to retrieve the copper cylinder

00:51:32or hide it, as the case may be.

00:51:35Ah, well, you see, it's the lifting that does it, you know.

00:51:38Not the pulling and bending, like, you know.

00:51:41Oh, I see.

00:51:42It's one of those kind of backs.

00:51:43Yes.

00:51:45Mr. Kernan, do you, in the course of your daily rounds

00:51:48of the streets, ever come across items

00:51:50without an apparent owner?

00:51:51Pieces of scrap, for example,

00:51:53lying by the roadside or in a derelict garden?

00:51:56Yeah, you do, from time to time.

00:51:58Not often, though.

00:52:00Do you ever pick them up, Mr. Kernan?

00:52:05Well, I might if they'd clearly been thrown away.

00:52:08Even though they didn't belong to you?

00:52:10Well, if they'd been clearly thrown away,

00:52:12where's the harm, sir?

00:52:13I mean, does men get paid to clear rubbish?

00:52:15But how do you define rubbish, Mr. Kernan?

00:52:18Rubbish, sir, is something that nobody wants.

00:52:20We're rubbish. Nobody wants us.

00:52:22Look, will you shut your face crazy, will you, please?

00:52:24Violence in court, please.

00:52:25I'm sorry, Your Honor.

00:52:26I mean, she's a good enough woman,

00:52:28but she's got too much of this, you know.

00:52:31Oh, yeah, but haven't they all?

00:52:32That's a leading question, Mr. Kernan,

00:52:34but I can assure you that if there's any further interruptions,

00:52:36I should clear the public gallery.

00:52:39Please continue, Mr. Perry.

00:52:40Mr. Kernan, you haven't denied

00:52:42that you were in Mr. Sibley's garden

00:52:44in the early hours of the 10th of September, 1982.

00:52:47You've said that you came into the garden

00:52:49via the hedge to retrieve your dog,

00:52:52which was chasing a rat.

00:52:54Have I got that right?

00:52:55Yeah, yeah, you have.

00:52:57Could you perhaps tell us how you came to be

00:52:59on the footpath beyond the hedge

00:53:00at two o'clock in the morning?

00:53:02Well, uh, I had to go to the bog, sir.

00:53:06I'm sorry?

00:53:07I had to go to the, uh, to the toilet, sir.

00:53:12I'm not altogether clear as to why that should require you

00:53:15to be on the footpath at the bottom of Mr. Sibley's garden

00:53:18at two o'clock in the morning, Mr. Kernan.

00:53:20Oh, well, you see, Your Honour,

00:53:21we've got no toilets of our own on the site, you see,

00:53:23so wherever we are, we have to use the public toilets.

00:53:26I mean, it's all right if you want to have a pee in the,

00:53:29pardon the expression, sir,

00:53:30in the hedge or behind a lorry,

00:53:33but nothing, uh, well,

00:53:35anything bigger, if you know what I mean, you know.

00:53:38Now, there are some public toilets

00:53:40at the far end of the footpath,

00:53:42be the, uh, Bowman Road Recreation Ground, you know,

00:53:45uh, just about a quarter of a mile from here.

00:53:48So what you're saying is that you were taken short

00:53:50in the middle of the night?

00:53:51Uh, that's it, Your Honour, yeah.

00:53:53You see, I had a couple of points that evening in the pub,

00:53:56and then one of them chewing the takeaways.

00:53:58Uh, they, they don't mix, Your Honour.

00:54:01Uh, no, I should imagine not.

00:54:03So, with commendable regard for propriety and, uh, hygiene,

00:54:11Mr. Kernan, you walked a quarter of a mile

00:54:14in the middle of the night simply to relieve yourself?

00:54:16Yes, sir.

00:54:17Well, we're not as dirty as you gargies think we are.

00:54:20Anyway, I, I couldn't sleep,

00:54:22what about the heat and the churning in me stomach?

00:54:24Eh, I thought that a bit of a walk

00:54:26might do me good, you know.

00:54:27Were the public toilets by the recreation ground open at night?

00:54:31Yeah, they were, sir.

00:54:32I mean, the Jeds was, anyway.

00:54:34Were they meant to be open?

00:54:37I don't follow your meaning, sir.

00:54:38Were they not normally locked at dusk?

00:54:41In fact, isn't it true, Mr. Kernan,

00:54:42that the only reason that these particular toilets

00:54:44were open during the hours of darkness

00:54:46was because they'd been repeatedly broken into?

00:54:48Now, Your Honour, the defendant cannot possibly be expected...

00:54:51No, no, no, it's all right.

00:54:51I can see what he's getting at right enough.

00:54:53Mr. Kernan...

00:54:54Look, if it was travellers who had busted the door,

00:54:57they wouldn't have done it just for the sake of busting it

00:54:58like your gargies vandal.

00:55:00They'd have done it just to get to the tap,

00:55:01to get water.

00:55:02Mr. Kernan...

00:55:03Because the garages and pubs around here

00:55:05are too bloody mean to let them have any.

00:55:07Mr. Kernan...

00:55:08I must warn you that you do yourself no good at all

00:55:11by such outbursts.

00:55:12Well, it's the truth, Your Honour,

00:55:13and we get the bloody blame for everything.

00:55:15And you will kindly moderate your language.

00:55:19Mr. Bass,

00:55:20your objection seems perfectly reasonable.

00:55:22Mr. Parry,

00:55:22the defendant is not here on trial

00:55:24for breaking into public conveniences.

00:55:25I'm obliged, Your Honour.

00:55:28Please continue, Mr. Parry.

00:55:30Mr. Kernan,

00:55:31when you were living on the Follin's Marsh site,

00:55:34did you normally park your lorry beside your caravan?

00:55:37Yeah, I did.

00:55:38Where was your caravan in relation to the entrance to the site?

00:55:41For example,

00:55:41was it the first caravan a visitor to the site might come to?

00:55:45No, there was four or five before mine.

00:55:47See?

00:55:48And would a visitor have to pass fairly close

00:55:50to those four or five caravans

00:55:52before reaching your own?

00:55:53Yes, sir.

00:55:54I see.

00:55:55Now, Police Constable Franklin has testified

00:55:57that when he entered the site,

00:55:59dogs from various caravans began to bark.

00:56:02Now, would you agree, Mr. Kernan,

00:56:03that a stranger, however stealthy,

00:56:05would be unlikely to have got as far as your caravan

00:56:07without alerting at least one of the other dogs,

00:56:10let alone your own?

00:56:11Yeah, he would, sir,

00:56:12coming from the road end.

00:56:13From the road end?

00:56:15From May 3 Avenue, Your Honour.

00:56:16Is there another way on to the site, then?

00:56:19Well, not for vehicles, Your Honour.

00:56:21Just a hole in the fence, like, onto the footpath.

00:56:23Ah, that would be the public footpath

00:56:25which runs behind the gardens in May 3 Avenue.

00:56:28Yeah, yes, Your Honour.

00:56:30And it runs partway along the edge of Pollen's Marsh as well.

00:56:34And there was a hole in the fence

00:56:35which allowed access from the footpath

00:56:37to the travellers' camp?

00:56:39Yes, sir.

00:56:40So it was a sort of short cut to the toilets, like I've said.

00:56:42I see.

00:56:43And whereabouts was this hole in the fence

00:56:45in relation to your caravan?

00:56:47Oh, about, er...

00:56:49Ah, about 10, 15 yards, I suppose.

00:56:53Yeah, well, my trailer was the closest one to it.

00:56:55Please continue, Mr. Perry.

00:56:58This hole in the fence, Mr. Kiernan,

00:57:00you say it was a short cut to the public toilets?

00:57:03Yeah, and to the town generally, if you was on foot, you know.

00:57:06Very convenient for slipping in and out.

00:57:08Oh, yeah, yeah.

00:57:09But would that apply to unwanted visitors

00:57:11as well as to travellers?

00:57:13Uh, how do you mean?

00:57:14Well, were you troubled by, say, inquisitive children

00:57:16or local hooligans coming onto the site

00:57:19through the hole in the fence?

00:57:20Ah, every now and again, yeah,

00:57:22but they soon gave it up.

00:57:24And why was that?

00:57:25Well, our own kids used to show them off.

00:57:28And your dogs.

00:57:29Oh, yeah, yeah, they'd get a bit excited,

00:57:31but they never bet no one else.

00:57:33So the hole in the fence was a convenient entrance

00:57:35for travellers, but not for strangers?

00:57:38Yeah.

00:57:39Mr. Kiernan, I put it to you

00:57:40that the truth of the matter is simply this,

00:57:42that on the night of the crime,

00:57:44you slipped out through the hole in the fence,

00:57:46went down the public footpath to Mr. Sibbler's garden,

00:57:49where you stole the copper cylinder

00:57:51and then slipped quietly back into your encampment,

00:57:54untroubled by your back.

00:57:56Look, if I was going to steal something

00:57:58in the middle of the night,

00:57:59I wouldn't take any bloody old dog with me, would I?

00:58:01Mr. Kiernan, I shall not speak to you again about your language.

00:58:04I have no further questions, Mr. Kiernan.

00:58:06Thank you, Your Honour.

00:58:08Silencing corpse!

00:58:09Oh, silence yourself, you big dummy!

00:58:11Madam, I have made generous allowance for the heat,

00:58:15but I will not tolerate any further disruptions

00:58:18of these proceedings.

00:58:20Clear the public gallery.

00:58:21Mr. Bass, do you wish to re-examine?

00:58:40Briefly, if it pleases Your Honour.

00:58:44Mr. Kiernan, these occasions when the children,

00:58:48local children, came onto the site

00:58:50through the hole in the fence,

00:58:52was this during the day?

00:58:53Yes, sir.

00:58:55Never at night?

00:58:56Well, once in an evening, maybe,

00:58:58but never after dark, no.

00:59:00Yes, were the intruders quiet?

00:59:03Stealthy?

00:59:04Not at all.

00:59:05Well, I mean, that was the whole point of it,

00:59:07was to make noise, you know.

00:59:08Shout names at us and so on, cause a bit of bother.

00:59:12That's a game guard ye kids like to play.

00:59:15You get used to it.

00:59:16The children on the site react, dogs bark.

00:59:20Yes, sir, they do.

00:59:22What about your own dog, Mr. Kiernan?

00:59:24Well, the old pups.

00:59:26The only thing he's interested in is rats.

00:59:29Lazy old bugger.

00:59:30And does he sleep outside at night?

00:59:32In the summer, yeah.

00:59:34Yeah, under the trailer, like.

00:59:35Did you say he was a good watchdog, Mr. Kiernan?

00:59:37Him?

00:59:39I heard the jambon wouldn't wake him up, sir,

00:59:41and that's the truth.

00:59:43And when you were on the Follins Marsh site,

00:59:45your caravan was the nearest to the hole in the fence?

00:59:49Yeah, that's right, sir.

00:59:50So anybody approaching your caravan or lorry

00:59:54from the hole in the fence

00:59:55would have to cover just 10 to 15 yards of rough ground

00:59:59and wouldn't have to pass a single dog

01:00:02before he reached the soundly sleeping pups.

01:00:05That's right, sir.

01:00:06Thank you, Mr. Kiernan.

01:00:12Your name is Andrew Hopper?

01:00:14It is.

01:00:15Where do you live, Mr. Hopper?

01:00:1628 Stambank Avenue, Fulchester.

01:00:18And could you tell the court your occupation, please?

01:00:21I'm employed by Fulchester Buddha Council

01:00:23as a polypathetic teacher

01:00:24and also as Traveller Liaison Officer.

01:00:28Traveller Liaison Officer.

01:00:29What exactly does that entail?

01:00:31Basically trying to help members of the Traveller community

01:00:34while they're in the Fulchester area.

01:00:36I see.

01:00:37Mr. Bass?

01:00:38Your Honor.

01:00:39Do you know the defendant, Mr. Hopper?

01:00:41Yes.

01:00:41I first met Mr. Kiernan and his family in 1981

01:00:45when they spent a few weeks on the old brickyard site north of town

01:00:49and I got to know him quite well in 1982

01:00:51when they were on Fulchester Marsh.

01:00:53Mr. Hopper, were you the guy

01:00:54from the Council's Ethnic Minority Unit

01:00:57who attended the Maitrey Avenue residence meeting

01:01:00on Thursday the 9th of September 1982

01:01:02to explain the change in Council policy towards the Travellers?

01:01:07I'm afraid so, yes.

01:01:08Mr. Sibley has described that meeting

01:01:10as the nearest thing to a riot he'd ever experienced.

01:01:14Would you say that gives a fair description of the event?

01:01:16Yes, I had a rough ride.

01:01:18There were suggestions of physical violence against the Travellers.

01:01:22Not just the Travellers, me as well.

01:01:25Did Mr. Sibley argue against such action?

01:01:28He did, yes.

01:01:29And in so arguing, what did he say?

01:01:30He said,

01:01:31there's more than one way to skin a rabbit.

01:01:34Did he elaborate on that?

01:01:37Well, not to me, no.

01:01:38He just looked at me and laughed.

01:01:42He laughed?

01:01:43Yes, he laughed.

01:01:47Now, at that time, Mr. Hopper,

01:01:50were you actually living in the Travellers' encampment on Fulchester Marsh?

01:01:54Yes, I was.

01:01:55This was a temporary arrangement, was it?

01:01:57Yes, I'd moved in on the Monday of that week.

01:02:00It was part of my public relations campaign,

01:02:02trying to convince the settled community

01:02:04that Travellers aren't just a bunch of unsavory, dishonest savages.

01:02:09I was doing a series of articles for the Gazette

01:02:11on what it was like living in a Traveller's camp.

01:02:13Were you staying with one of the families,

01:02:15or did you have a caravan of your own?

01:02:16I borrowed a beat-up old two-berth from a colleague at the town hall.

01:02:20And whereabouts on the site was it situated?

01:02:22Next to Joe Keenan's.

01:02:24Do you recall Mr. Keenan having a bad back at about this time?

01:02:28Yes.

01:02:28He ricked it on the Thursday morning.

01:02:30It's an occupational hazard with people who shift scrap and rubble.

01:02:33I see.

01:02:34Mr. Hopper, did you sleep in your caravan that Thursday night?

01:02:37That's the 9th of September, 1982.

01:02:40Uh, not very well, no.

01:02:42I beg your pardon?

01:02:44Uh, yes, but I didn't sleep very well.

01:02:47I'd been with Joe.

01:02:48We'd both been a bit over-ambitious with the beer and prawn crackers.

01:02:52I dozed off at about 1,

01:02:54woke up again about half-past 3 in the morning.

01:02:56What did you do when you woke up at half-past 3 on that Friday morning?

01:03:00Opened the caravan door to get some air.

01:03:01Uh, caravans are like pressure cookers on hot nights.

01:03:05Did you look out at the caravan door?

01:03:07Yes.

01:03:08What did you see?

01:03:09I saw a man's figure heading for the hole in the fence behind the caravans.

01:03:14Can you describe the person you saw?

01:03:17Medium height.

01:03:19Thick set.

01:03:22That's all I can say.

01:03:23He had his back to me and he was moving fast,

01:03:26uh, crouched as he went,

01:03:27and then he was through the fence and was gone.

01:03:29Thank you, Mr. Hopper.

01:03:31I have no further questions.

01:03:34Mr. Hopper, if the man you saw was crouched,

01:03:37how do you know he was of medium height?

01:03:40I could tell he wasn't very tall.

01:03:42That's all I meant.

01:03:43Isn't it possible that the person you saw was, in fact,

01:03:45a traveller off on his way to the now-famous public toilets,

01:03:48and that he was crouched because, like yourself and Mr. Kernan,

01:03:52he was suffering from the aftermath of the equally famous

01:03:54beer and Chinese takeaway?

01:03:56Mr. Perry, I appreciate the point that you are making,

01:04:00but I would prefer you to make it in a less facetious manner.

01:04:04My apologies, Your Honor.

01:04:06Mr. Hopper, are you suggesting that the person you say you saw

01:04:09leaving the Follins Marsh site at half-past three in the morning

01:04:13was Mr. Sibley?

01:04:15It may have been.

01:04:16It may have been.

01:04:17Can you identify the person you saw leaving the site as Mr. Sibley,

01:04:21or can you not?

01:04:24Yes or no, Mr. Hopper?

01:04:27No.

01:04:31Would you describe yourself as the traveller's champion?

01:04:34Not really, no.

01:04:37I wouldn't be so patronising.

01:04:39I see.

01:04:40Now, you mentioned earlier that in September of 1982,

01:04:43you were writing some pieces for the local paper

01:04:45about life as a traveller.

01:04:47With Your Honor's permission,

01:04:48I should like to quote from the Fulchester Gazette,

01:04:50dated September the 16th, 1982.

01:04:53May I see it?

01:05:04Carry on, Mr. Perry.

01:05:09I am obliged, Your Honor.

01:05:14Mr. Hopper,

01:05:16in one of your articles,

01:05:19you state,

01:05:20in the battle against reaction and prejudice,

01:05:23the struggle of the minority

01:05:24against the often vindictive majority,

01:05:27who would be to blame

01:05:28if those being ground into the mud

01:05:30chose to fight dirty?

01:05:34Aye, Mr. Hopper,

01:05:35I put it to you

01:05:36that if Mr. Sibley's remark

01:05:37about skinning of rabbits

01:05:38is open to interpretation,

01:05:40your own views on travellers or not,

01:05:42I suggest that you are prepared

01:05:44to fight dirty on their behalf

01:05:46and that your testimony

01:05:48seeking to imply

01:05:49that Mr. Sibley fabricated the alleged crime

01:05:51is an example of such tactics,

01:05:53a misguided attempt to protect a person

01:05:55who, though most certainly entitled

01:05:57to be protected

01:05:57and fairly treated by the law,

01:06:00equally certainly is not above it.

01:06:04What's the question?

01:06:14Thank you, Mr. Hopper.

01:06:16Mr. Bass, do you wish to re-examine?

01:06:18Yes, Your Honor.

01:06:20Mr. Hopper,

01:06:21have you ever incited

01:06:23the defendant

01:06:24or other travellers

01:06:25to break or defy the law?

01:06:27No, I have not.

01:06:29The whole point of my job

01:06:30is to remove points of conflict

01:06:32between travellers

01:06:33and the settled community,

01:06:34not turn them into urban guerrillas.

01:06:37What about this newspaper article

01:06:38which my learned friend

01:06:40is just quoting?

01:06:41All I was trying to say

01:06:42in that article

01:06:44is that as a result of legislation

01:06:46like the Caravan Sites Act

01:06:48and the Highways Act,

01:06:51the majority of travellers

01:06:52virtually have no legal right to exist.

01:06:54Whenever they stop moving,

01:06:57they are technically breaking the law.

01:06:59The only thing they have to look forward to

01:07:01is eviction.

01:07:01They're living under that sort of pressure.

01:07:04The wonder is

01:07:04that so many travellers

01:07:05are so law-abiding

01:07:06so much of the time.

01:07:08Joe Kiernan is a case in point.

01:07:10Thank you, Mr. Hopper.

01:07:12That concludes the case

01:07:13for the defence, Your Honor.

01:07:14Ladies and gentlemen of the jury,

01:07:23during this trial,

01:07:24two explanations have been put forward

01:07:26as to how the copper cylinder,

01:07:28Exhibit 1,

01:07:29arrived under the accused's lorry.

01:07:32One explanation is

01:07:33that the accused stole it.

01:07:35The second explanation

01:07:36is that Gordon Sibley,

01:07:38the owner of the cylinder,

01:07:40a well-respected citizen

01:07:41of good character,

01:07:43put it there by stealth

01:07:44in the certain knowledge

01:07:45that its discovery by the police

01:07:47would lead to the defendant

01:07:48being charged with its theft.

01:07:51In support of this second explanation,

01:07:54you have heard the flimsiest

01:07:56of real evidence.

01:07:58On the other hand,

01:07:59in support of the first explanation

01:08:00that the accused stole the cylinder

01:08:03from Mr. Sibley's garden shed,

01:08:04you have heard the following.

01:08:06The accused of his own admission

01:08:08is a man who habitually defies the law

01:08:11by settling on property

01:08:13on which he has no right to settle.

01:08:14He lives from eviction to eviction.

01:08:17Further, of his own admission,

01:08:18he came twice,

01:08:20unbidden,

01:08:21into Mr. Sibley's garden.

01:08:23His second incursion

01:08:24being on the night

01:08:25that the cylinder

01:08:25disappeared from the garden shed.

01:08:28Finally,

01:08:29he was later found

01:08:30in possession of the cylinder

01:08:32with no explanation

01:08:33as to how he came by it.

01:08:36I put it to you,

01:08:37ladies and gentlemen of the jury,

01:08:39that the evidence is overwhelming.

01:08:41There can be no reasonable doubt

01:08:43that the accused stole the cylinder.

01:08:49Members of the jury,

01:08:51the prosecution has suggested to you

01:08:53that the case against the defendant

01:08:55is overwhelming.

01:08:58It has also dismissed the possibility

01:09:00of Mr. Sibley being implicated

01:09:02in an attempt to pervert

01:09:04the course of justice.

01:09:05But how overwhelming

01:09:07is the prosecution evidence?

01:09:10I would suggest to you

01:09:11that it is purely circumstantial.

01:09:14Nobody claims

01:09:15to have actually seen

01:09:16Mr. Kiernan

01:09:17steal the cylinder.

01:09:19You've heard him giving evidence

01:09:21he's an intelligent man.

01:09:23If he had set out

01:09:24to steal the copper cylinder,

01:09:25would he have taken a dog with him?

01:09:28Returning to his caravan,

01:09:29would he have waited

01:09:30four hours

01:09:31before hiding

01:09:32his ill-gotten gains?

01:09:35The crime hardly fits

01:09:37the image

01:09:37of the crafty survivor

01:09:39seizing his opportunities.

01:09:42As to Mr. Sibley,

01:09:43you have heard

01:09:44that he had the strength,

01:09:46experience,

01:09:47and expertise

01:09:48to have infiltrated

01:09:49the traveller's camp.

01:09:52And you've also heard

01:09:53that the police

01:09:53were eager

01:09:54to pounce on

01:09:54the opportunity

01:09:55of the kind

01:09:56presented by the disappearance

01:09:57of the copper cylinder.

01:09:58I suggest to you

01:10:01that when Mr. Sibley

01:10:02said there's more

01:10:03than one way

01:10:04to skin a rabbit,

01:10:05he knew full well

01:10:06what he was talking about

01:10:07and therefore

01:10:08that there is

01:10:09very real doubt

01:10:11as to how the cylinder

01:10:12came to be

01:10:13under the defendant's lorry.

01:10:16Members of the jury,

01:10:19the council's closing speeches

01:10:20have presented you

01:10:21with two alternatives

01:10:22to choose from

01:10:23in deciding

01:10:24how the copper cylinder

01:10:26came into

01:10:26the defendant's possession.

01:10:28That seems to me

01:10:30a reasonable basis

01:10:31from which to start

01:10:32your deliberations.

01:10:34In certain instances,

01:10:36you will have to choose

01:10:36between two interpretations

01:10:38of the same evidence.

01:10:40Did the defendant's fingerprints

01:10:42come to be

01:10:43on the door

01:10:43of the garden shed

01:10:44because he

01:10:45innocently pushed

01:10:46the door to

01:10:47during his first visit

01:10:48to Mr. Sibley's garden

01:10:50or because he

01:10:52less innocently

01:10:53pulled the door open

01:10:55during his second visit?

01:10:57Was he putting the cylinder

01:11:00under the lorry

01:11:00when challenged

01:11:01by the police

01:11:02or was he taking it out?

01:11:06When weighing up

01:11:07the evidence, however,

01:11:10you must remember

01:11:10one thing

01:11:11above all else.

01:11:13It is for the prosecution

01:11:15to prove its case.

01:11:17The defense need prove

01:11:19nothing at all.

01:11:19if you think

01:11:22the copper cylinder

01:11:23came to be

01:11:24under the lorry

01:11:24by some means

01:11:25other than

01:11:26dishonest appropriation

01:11:27by the accused,

01:11:29you must acquit him.

01:11:30You will now retire,

01:11:33elect a foreman

01:11:34to be your spokesman

01:11:35and consider your verdict.

01:11:40The defendant will stand.

01:11:43Members of the jury,

01:11:44will your foreman

01:11:44please stand?

01:11:46Please answer this question,

01:11:47yes or no.

01:11:48Have you reached a verdict

01:11:49on which you are all agreed?

01:11:51Yes.

01:11:51Do you find the defendant,

01:11:52Joseph Michael Kiernan,

01:11:53guilty or not guilty

01:11:54of theft?

01:11:55Not guilty.

01:12:00Joseph Michael Kiernan,

01:12:30Wra término,

01:12:34favor,

01:12:35Please stand,

01:12:36fold and you dare,

01:12:37to agree with us

01:12:38and support him

01:12:39as any hate

01:12:39as possible.

01:12:40As yet,

01:12:41Thelma was entitled

01:12:41As you are here,

01:12:42to pledge hisến

01:12:43in his Darren

01:12:44to follow hisUST

01:12:45of southeastern

01:12:45an international

01:12:45together.

01:12:46Congratulations,

01:12:46To be who

01:12:48the Senate

01:12:48will be

01:12:50as best

01:12:51.

01:12:51Make it

01:12:52theา

01:12:55Final

01:12:56Two

01:12:57Coming

01:12:58Bom

01:12:59Cross

01:13:00Going

Crown Court - Citizens (1984)

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