The father of a 13-year-old daughter who was raped and whose case has been pending for two years has spoken out about the catastrophic effects of court delays.
Due to the inability to locate an appropriate judge to hear the case, the girl now faces a nine-month delay.
It is one of many pending criminal cases in the judicial system; budget cuts and Covid are blamed for the backlog.
Priority, according to the administration, is rapid action for victims.
In England and Wales, the Crown Courts are taking the longest time on record to adjudicate serious sexual offenses.
The father explained how the delays in his daughter’s rape trial affected her and the rest of the family. As they prepared for the case to be heard earlier this summer, they were informed they would have to wait another nine months.
In an emotional interview with Mishal Husain of Today, the father detailed the horror of the initial attack and following judicial delays.
It was the summer of 2020 when the Covid lockdown had been lifted sufficiently to permit park visitation. One afternoon, the man’s 13-year-old daughter rode a bus to a neighboring village to meet some friends. She was attacked in broad daylight as she began her return trek.
“We are cautious about where she travels. She did not go out at night “elucidates her father
The cops interviewed the girl. A suspect was apprehended, arrested, and charged with the assault.
The girl was cross-examined later when the family learned that the case would be going to trial. Vulnerable victims and young witnesses might have their evidence videotaped outside of courtrooms in advance. It is then played throughout the trial, removing the requirement for the vulnerable individual to attend in person in the majority of circumstances.
“All of this was quite distressing, yet my daughter persevered… Then the nightmare began to unfold “her father declares.
‘Garbled’ message
The family anticipated a two-year wait for the trial to begin in June 2022 at the Crown Court. It would have occurred immediately following the Jubilee Bank Holiday. On the final news day before the holiday, however, they learned that the procedures had been postponed for another nine months, until March 2023.
The father reports receiving a “confused” phone message from a member of the court’s support team at midday, followed by an email from the jury team head at 16:00. The email stated that the case could not proceed because the Judicial Secretariat, which recruits judges for the court, had “failed to secure a judge.”
The statement continued, “It also appears that the CPS, the Crown Prosecution Service, is not prepared for the hearing to proceed, thus the case has been delayed.” The CPS claims it was prepared for the trial to begin on June 6, the date initially scheduled.
The news “shattered us,” the father said. My daughter had met with the judge during pre-trial proceedings, as well as the barristers and all court staff.
The family had been assured that the trial would be presided over by the same judge who had presided over previous procedures.
They acknowledge that the courts have had a “particularly difficult time” since the pandemic struck in 2020, but they believe this does not justify what they have endured.
“It has been an absolute nightmare. There is an extensive list of things we cannot believe “The father states.
One of the lowest periods was when the family discovered, shortly before Christmas, that the accused attacker worked in a store near their home.
“The accused perpetrator was working 30 feet away from my daughter’s bedroom. We were unable to believe it.”
The family called the police, who stated they could do nothing. They then contacted the public defender, who concurred that nothing could be done because, while the bail conditions required non-contact, there was no need that the defendant maintains a specific distance from the family.
The public defender obtained a statement from the victim in preparation for an application to modify the bail conditions.
But the father believed that the CPS, courts, and police “weren’t interested,” and he ultimately approached the store chain where the man worked. The accused ceased working at the store shortly thereafter.
The father is particularly scathing of the local social services team, which, according to him, only met his daughter once, after which he “never saw hide nor hair of them again.”
After the man was charged, there was “little or no interest” in the case, according to him.
The family is astounded
His daughter is 15 today. Before the new trial date, she will be 16 years old, three years older than when the alleged assault occurred. So how is she handling the situation?
Her father is “amazed at how courageous she has been… She desired to go to court,” he says.
However, the process has left the family speechless. And the sexual incident and following delays have had a significant impact on his daughter’s life.
Before the attack, she was a “really happy-go-lucky sort of person.” According to him, she now suffers from mood swings and spends a lot of time crying in her room.
“My daughter does not want hugs from anyone, including her mother,” he says.
The adolescent quit attending school and has been homeschooled for the past two years.
He would like to be able to move on since every time the subject is brought up again, it causes his daughter distress. “She refuses to leave the house, therefore we cannot take her anywhere.”
The family has even considered leaving.
“We desire some indication that the issue has been resolved and we can move on. We are all devastated, utterly devastated by the situation.”
He says that he regrets taking the case to court. His family was unprepared for the “grief and frustration” they encountered when interacting with the legal system.
It appears to be complete incompetence.
According to him, trying to reach the CPS and, on occasion, the police was frustrating. They would be informed, “Oh, that officer no longer works here; he’s on leave and in training.”
‘Buck passing’
Their local representative did help, forwarding a letter from the region’s chief prosecutor for the CPS stating that they were “concerned” and had requested that the situation be further probed.
However, the letter also stated that the scheduling of court hearings was a “judicial duty” and that any complaints regarding the delay should be sent to the court, not the CPS.
It’s a case of “passing the buck,” the father asserts.
The family contacted the Secretary of State for Justice, Dominic Raab, upon learning that the trial had been postponed. They received no response until the Today show made contact. The letter they received conveyed sorrow and expressed regret for the delayed response.
It proceeded: “The judge is responsible for determining whether a trial can proceed and when it can be held. Included are any adjournments. Ministers and officials of the government cannot intervene in this procedure.
This is not due to a lack of compassion for your family’s circumstances, but rather because judges are entirely independent, and nothing must be done to compromise this position.
In response to our request for comment, a spokesperson for the Ministry of Justice stated: “Restoring the swift access to justice that victims deserve is our top priority, and we are investing nearly a half-billion pounds to reduce wait times, in addition to increasing funding for victim support to £460 million over the next three years.
“Our efforts had already reduced the backlog caused by the epidemic by approximately 2,000 cases, but the barristers’ strike action is undermining these efforts and will only result in additional delays for victims.”
This report is based on an interview conducted by Sinead Heekin and Mishal Husain for the Today show on 31 August.
