LORD Janner escaped prosecution in connection to sex abuse claims on at least
three occasions, an independent inquiry has revealed.
The ex-Labour MP, who died last December, was accused of 22 counts of sex
offences against boys between the 1960s and 1980s.
An inquiry commissioned by director of public prosecutions Alison Saunders
found the decision not to charge Janner in 1991 was “wrong.”
It went on to say that there was enough evidence at the time which provided a “realistic
prospect of conviction” for indecent assault and one other serious
sexual offence.
More than a decade later, in 2002, the report said police failed to pass on
allegations made against the former politician to the Crown Prosecution
Service (CPS), something which made a prosecution “not possible.”
Finally, in 2007, authorities once again dropped the ball, as there was “sufficient
evidence to prosecute Lord Janner for indecent assault and buggery.”
The report said that in that particular situation “he should have been
arrested and interviewed and his home searched.”
READ MORE:
Firework
expert and assistant died in massive explosion at wedding
I’ve
got my 19th bun in the oven: UK’s biggest family has another on the way
In the aftermath of the report’s findings Ms Saunders expressed “sincere
regret” a the missed opportunities to bring Lord Janner to justice.
She said: “The inquiry’s findings that mistakes were made confirms my
view that failings in the past by prosecutors and police meant that
proceedings were not brought.
“It is a matter of sincere regret that on three occasions, opportunities
to put the allegations against Lord Janner before a jury were not taken.
“It is important that we understand the steps which led to these
decisions not to prosecute, and ensure that no such mistakes can be made
again.”
In December, Lord
Janner was ruled unfit to stand trial. He had been suffering from
Alzheimer’s disease since 2009.
Mr Justice Openshaw told the Old Bailey the 87-year-old had “advanced and
disabling dementia.”
A “trial of facts” scheduled for April was called off following his
death last month – robbing
victims of their chance to see justice.
This latest inquiry, carried out by retired High Court judge Richard
Henriques, found Leicestershire Police failed to cover basic steps when
looking into the 1991 allegations involving claims that a 14-year-old boy
had shared a room with Lord Janner.
Sir Richard said the police investigation at the time was “extremely
limited” and that not enough questions were asked at the children’s
homes where the boy lived.
Leicestershire police said they were “disappointed” at the report’s
findings.
A spokesman said: “During the course of his review Sir Richard spoke to a
number of CPS staff in order to understand their role in those previous
investigations into Lord Janner.
“We would have welcomed the opportunity to assist Sir Richard in a
similar way and are disappointed not to have been asked to do so.”
The inquiry has made recommendations on how the CPS should handle similar
cases in the future, such as considering whether time limits in charging
decisions are appropriate.
Lord Janner’s family denies all the allegations against him.