A fair trial?

[Jackiepreece]

And Hartley I sleep with the innocent t shirt on every night I am just looking for somewhere they put photo faces on t shirts if anyone knows and if you come if you come to Brentwood you will see a yellow ribbon tied around every tree till my beloved comes home

I am not a solicitor I am not a barrister or a judge but I know when somethings not right and when you go running back to your friends at WHF tonight give them a message I never never give up when I think something is wrong

[chochokeira]

Brilliant brilliant posts as usual Chochokeira imagine if JB is innocent sitting in prison I wish he could read some of your words they would keep him going if he was ever thinking of giving up his fight

Okay, this sitting on a convicted murderers knee stroking his hair and whispering sweet nothings into his ear, type comments is really quite bizarre. 

You know better than to make personal attacks like this, Harters. Ad hominem and attempted character assassination merely signify a desperate clutching of straws by those trapped in the labyrinth of collapsed of Reason

[grahameb]

Brilliant brilliant posts as usual Chochokeira imagine if JB is innocent sitting in prison I wish he could read some of your words they would keep him going if he was ever thinking of giving up his fight

Okay, this sitting on a convicted murderers knee stroking his hair and whispering sweet nothings into his ear, type comments is really quite bizarre. 

You know better than to make personal attacks like this, Harters. Ad hominem and attempted character assassination merely signify a desperate clutching of straws by those trapped in the labyrinth of collapsed of Reason

I think he's just joking Choc? Unfortunately its abit like me. I see something funny in everything and then end up getting my knuckes rapped. A couple of people have even deleted me from their facebook friends lists because of it.

[chochokeira]

Brilliant brilliant posts as usual Chochokeira imagine if JB is innocent sitting in prison I wish he could read some of your words they would keep him going if he was ever thinking of giving up his fight

Okay, this sitting on a convicted murderers knee stroking his hair and whispering sweet nothings into his ear, type comments is really quite bizarre. 

I refuse to smite you for that spiteful comment, it would draw me down to the same level.

Have a good day, Harters 

[Jackiepreece]

Chochokeira I can take it there are so many peoples views I respect on this forum a friend of the family doesn't ruffle my feathers at all. I just wish I could be more eloquent  like you

[chochokeira]

Brilliant brilliant posts as usual Chochokeira imagine if JB is innocent sitting in prison I wish he could read some of your words they would keep him going if he was ever thinking of giving up his fight

Okay, this sitting on a convicted murderers knee stroking his hair and whispering sweet nothings into his ear, type comments is really quite bizarre. 

You know better than to make personal attacks like this, Harters. Ad hominem and attempted character assassination merely signify a desperate clutching of straws by those trapped in the labyrinth of collapsed of Reason

I think he's just joking Choc? Unfortunately its abit like me. I see something funny in everything and then end up getting my knuckes rapped. A couple of people have even deleted me from their facebook friends lists because of it.

Thanks, Grahame, but Harters is well aware that there are two forms of humour: sharing jokes with others and laughing with them, or making - alleged - jokes at others' expense. Only the first form is true humour, the second form is simply spitefulness

[chochokeira]

Chochokeira I can take it there are so many peoples views I respect on this forum a friend of the family doesn't ruffle my feathers at all. I just wish I could be more eloquent  like you

I'm not eloquent, Jackie: you are.

[Hartley]

Chochokeira I can take it there are so many peoples views I respect on this forum a friend of the family doesn't ruffle my feathers at all. I just wish I could be more eloquent  like you

All this relative and friend of the family business, if I was, then I would think that my views would be a little stronger, don't you? Plus I'm not sure pointing out where Anns daughter lived would be in a relatives or family friends best interest either.

Although I'm bored of denying, so carry on as you were.

Right now about my spiteful comment    Yes it was a little sarcastically put across, but I still really dont understand how you can talk about a convicted killer in such a personal way as if your his carer, even more so when the only evidence you go on is gut feeling. Personally even if I. was 99.9 percent certain he was innocent, I still don't think i'd take the chance and so openly grasp him to your bussom like you have. As I said, I find it really quite bizarre.

[Jackiepreece]

Hartley please concentrate on the topic of the thread Chochokeira posted some excellent information on here that might be helpful should you ever find yourself arrested for anything.  There are still so many mysteries around this case that there are even people on here who think JB is guilty would like a retrial.

These threads shouldn't have to end up so nasty I have learnt something today from Chochokeira and I am grateful because I didn't think to look it up myself.

[chochokeira]

Chochokeira I can take it there are so many peoples views I respect on this forum a friend of the family doesn't ruffle my feathers at all. I just wish I could be more eloquent  like you

All this relative and friend of the family business, if I was, then I would think that my views would be a little stronger, don't you? Plus I'm not sure pointing out where Anns daughter lived would be in a relatives or family friends best interest either.

Although I'm bored of denying, so carry on as you were.

Right now about my spiteful comment    Yes it was a little sarcastically put across, but I still really dont understand how you can talk about a convicted killer in such a personal way as if your his carer, even more so when the only evidence you go on is gut feeling. Personally even if I. was 99.9 percent certain he was innocent, I still don't think i'd take the chance and so openly grasp him to your bussom like you have. As I said, I find it really quite bizarre.

Please supply a link to any comment of mine supporting your claim that I "openly grasp him" to my "bussom" in any shape or form or speak of JB in a personal way - you will not find one.

I'm a lover of justice and civil liberties, not of JB, he's not my type.

I find it bizare that you do not abhor the failure of our justice system to allow JB - and others - a fair trial. Every accused citizen, innocent or guilty, has the right to justice.

[Hartley]

I was reffering to Jackie, not you  Choc.

[Jackiepreece]

Emilia di Girolamo - Writer
I don’t have a single doubt that Jeremy is innocent.

During the eight years I worked in offender rehabilitation, I met many men and women convicted of murder and other very serious crimes. Some I met fleetingly, others I worked with intensively but in all cases, it was clear that the person before me was capable of committing the offence their prison file told me they had committed. Even the prisoners who claimed to be innocent victims of a ‘fit up’, were betrayed by aspects of their personality, demeanor, little signs indicative of guilt. Working inside, I quickly learned to trust my instincts. My instincts told me Jeremy was innocent even before I read the huge amount of incredibly compelling evidence proving beyond any doubt, his conviction is unsafe.

Why was I so certain? I have studied many cases of family annihilation and women who have killed their own children, something we as a nation found incomprehensible in 1985. My knowledge of these cases, and of the typical profile of a family annihilator, meant Jeremy’s case never felt quite right to me. Jeremy doesn’t fit the profile of a family annihilator, though sadly his sister Sheila did fit the profile of a mother capable of killing her children.

It is incredibly difficult to accept a woman is capable of killing her own children but the sad truth is, since the murder at White House Farm, many women have committed equally tragic and terrible murders. There have been literally thousands of cases worldwide though there are the ones that stick in your head – Susan Smith who drove her car into a lake in 1994 with her two children strapped inside, Andrea Yates, the Texas mother who drowned her five children in the bath tub in 2001. In 2009, Rekha Kumari-Baker, stabbed her teenage daughters a total of 69 times. In 2010, Brit Lianne Smith, confessed to killing her two children in a Spanish hotel room. Just this month Theresa Riggi, pleaded guilty to killing her three children.

It’s disturbing and terrifying to the national psyche but it happens.

It is exactly what I believe happened that night at White House Farm. I believe Sheila, a diagnosed paranoid schizophrenic, who had been directly challenged by her parents that very evening over her parenting skills, snapped, killing her children, her parents and then herself. It isn’t just my belief - there is overwhelming evidence that Sheila was alive inside the house, while Jeremy was outside with the police for several hours, before the police broke down the door. The police log, hidden from the defense at the time of Jeremy’s trial, clearly quotes Nevill Bamber, ‘My daughter’s gone beserk, she’s got hold of one of my guns’.

I don’t work in prison anymore. I work as a TV script writer and producer, writing television drama. Jeremy’s case is so bizarre, so loaded with mistakes, cover ups and conspiracies it’s way beyond anything I would dream up at my desk. But at the heart of this case is an innocent man who has been locked up far too long. The evidence is so overwhelming, the CCRC are going to look very stupid if they reject an appeal again.


My husband and I have come to know Jeremy well and we are one hundred percent certain the man we know is not capable of killing anyone. He is an extraordinary person who continues to work relentlessly to prove his innocence. He has a remarkable spirit, a rare strength of character and is a warm, compassionate and kind human being who I am deeply privileged to know.

[Jackiepreece]

Eric Allison, Journalist
Why I am convinced of Jeremy Bamber's Innocence by Eric Allison

I started looking closely at Jeremy's conviction some years back. As a journalist, writing mainly on criminal justice/penal matters, I get to hear of many alleged wrongful convictions and try to approach each case in a calm, dispassionate manner. Thus it was when I wrote to Jeremy and began to delve into the background of the case that I became convinced of Jeremy’s innocence.

The majority of people reading this will be familiar with Jeremy's website and will know much of the mountain of evidence pointing to his innocence. Therefore, I will not go over that evidence here; other perhaps, than to point to the part of it that I find most compelling. I am totally convinced Sheila was alive in the house long after Jeremy was standing outside with the police. Never mind the logs which record a 'conversation’-between police and a person the house; never mind the 'sighting in the window', or the 'two dead bodies in the kitchen’ (one of which transferred to the bedroom.) Forget all of that and consider this: the police used a loud hailer to try and communicate with somebody in the house for two hours. Immediately after they ceased using the loudhailer, they called for back-up firearms teams, as a matter of urgency. Why would they do this if, as they insist now, there was no response from within the house? If you believe them; sign up for the Pigs Can Fly Club this minute.

But, evidence apart, there is another, even more compelling, reason for my belief in Jeremy's innocence; a reason which would make me a believer, without the evidence referred to earlier. Since I first contacted Jeremy, by letter, we have corresponded on a regular basis and I have received many dozens of letters from him. I also had the pleasure of speaking to him on the phone for a short while. Through those letters and phone calls, I feel I have got to know him well and, quite simply, find it impossible to believe he could have committed the awful crimes which led to him spending over a quarter of a century behind bars.

Like Jeremy. I have spent a large slice of my life in prison and I have come across many people who have committed heinous offences. Almost without exception, it was possible to see, in their characters, the propensity to carry out the acts for which they were convicted. The ability to judge one's fellow travellers is an important survival tool in prison and I have learned to trust my judgement. I repeat, there is nothing in Jeremy's character to even hint of his capability to slaughter his family.

The criminal justice system, of course, will not rely on such character assessment, despite Jeremy flying past numerous psychological tests-and a lie detector trial. But it will do for me and I do not have to wait until the system finally admits its mistake: Jeremy Bamber is innocent.OK.

[Jackiepreece]

Lorna Lake
Why I believe in Jeremy Bamber by Lorna Lake

My grandmother had books on her shelves with such titles as “Poisoners of Women” and “Murder by Person or Persons Unknown” which were accounts of Victorian and early Twentieth Century crime which was enough to get me interested in the true crime genre. This was a time when the majority of the public believed that British Justice was fair - making only the “occasional” mistake. It was the concern about those mistakes that brought about the abolition of Capital Punishment in the United Kingdom in 1965.

There had been an outcry in 1923 when Edith Thompson was hanged - her husband was killed by her lover in October 1922 - the trial was a few weeks later in December where it was established that she influenced her lover and even though she did not physically carry out the murder she was convicted. There had been the infamous John Christie case – Christie was certainly guilty of six gruesome murders – he was tried in June 1953 and hanged in July 1953. But Timothy Evans had been already been hanged in 1950 for a murder that it had become clear Christie had committed. Timothy Evans was cleared of this murder in 1965 and posthumously pardoned.

There were other hideous errors: Mahmood Mattan had been hanged in 1952 and following years of campaigning he was declared innocent in 1998; Derek Bentley was hanged for his part in the shooting of a police officer even though it was known that he had learning disabilities and had not handled the gun – his “partner in crime” (who had fired the gun) was given a prison sentence as he was too young to face execution. The public had been greatly disturbed by the Ruth Ellis conviction – she shot her lover and though there was considerable evidence to demonstrate that she was emotionally unstable at the time, she was also hanged in July 1955.

But the repeal of Capital Punishment has not stopped great injustices being committed. In the last thirty years there have been many now infamous cases: Stephen Dowling imprisoned wrongly for 28 years; the Birmingham Six; Judith Ward in jail for 18 years; the Guildford Four and Jerry Maguire served 15 years; the Bridgewater Four – 18 years (though one man died in jail after only 2 years); Sean Hodgson served 27 years and Stefan Kiszko served 16 years and sadly died a broken man within a year of freedom.

The list goes on and each “case” represents human tragedy compounded by an antiquated legal system which has resisted reform and is somehow insulated against scrutiny. Too many convictions have been due to fabricated evidence and careless investigation on the part of the police.

The public is now able to access information regarding crimes and criminals on the internet – there is a wealth of detail available on dedicated sites which may even include post mortem results and even photographs of crime scenes. Mainly this is good – it leads to so-called “transparency” where we, the Great British Public, can become fully informed. There is a downside to all of this – the public is led to think that all information is available and this is simply not true. Some information regarding the Jeremy Bamber case is locked away under the rules of “PII” not only from the public but even from Jeremy’s Defence lawyers – in total 340,000 documents and 259 photographs are withheld. Jeremy has been in prison for 26 years for a crime he could not possibly have committed. There was absolutely no forensic evidence against him – all the evidence was circumstantial and witness statements that were demonstrably inaccurate.

The tragic deaths at White House Farm in August 1985 took from Jeremy a family who he loved as well as his freedom. Scott Lomax wrote the excellent book “Jeremy Bamber: Evil, almost beyond belief” which is certainly a very good introduction to the case. The available evidence totally supports Jeremy’s innocence and even now more evidence is coming to light despite Essex Police and the relatives having destroyed items which could have helped at the time of the trial and they even fabricated evidence too. There are many people who should truly hang their heads in shame for their part in this travesty. What started as a relatively simple but devastating family tragedy has turned into one of the gravest miscarriages of justice that this country has ever seen.

There’s another worrying aspect to this case – in 1985 Care in the Community was being introduced – the Great British Public was already concerned at the prospect of mad people being loose in the streets – the last thing the Establishment wanted was a family to be wiped out by a poor lady inadequately treated for schizophrenia. There was a great deal of money to be made from the new plans for the mentally ill – there were many psychiatric hospitals on prime building sites and many property developers were rubbing their hands with glee at the prospect of the profits ahead. There have been many terrible incidents where mentally ill women have murdered their children during the past 25 years – Sheila was sadly the first. The Establishment had many reasons to find Jeremy Bamber guilty.

I had been initially a little nervous about writing to Jeremy – although I had no doubt about his innocence I was worried that my name and address might end up in the wrong hands – but after a little procrastination I plucked up the courage and wrote a card and enclosed some stamps and I was astonished when only 3 days later I received a very friendly letter in reply. That was the start of our regular correspondence – letters which contained news of his case and sincere friendship too. I have a lifetime’s experience of people and additionally I trained as a mental health nurse – I’ve never heard or read anything from Jeremy which has given me a moment’s doubt about his innocence. We speak on the phone regularly which of course has added a valuable dimension to our friendship not least his sense of humour. Jeremy is never self-absorbed despite his cruel circumstances and he always remembers to ask about my dear old uncle and even my dog. With little preamble I’ve asked Jeremy very direct questions about that night’s events – there’s never any hesitation in answering nor is there any hint that he resents such enquiry. I’ve seen it stated that Jeremy is arrogant – he is not – he is very intelligent, very loyal, very kind and very sensitive and he brings those qualities to his friendships. In short, and as has been said before, Jeremy is a very special yet ordinary man in truly extraordinary and outrageous circumstances.

I’m proud to call him My Friend.

[Jackiepreece]

Lorna Lake
Why I believe in Jeremy Bamber by Lorna Lake

My grandmother had books on her shelves with such titles as “Poisoners of Women” and “Murder by Person or Persons Unknown” which were accounts of Victorian and early Twentieth Century crime which was enough to get me interested in the true crime genre. This was a time when the majority of the public believed that British Justice was fair - making only the “occasional” mistake. It was the concern about those mistakes that brought about the abolition of Capital Punishment in the United Kingdom in 1965.

There had been an outcry in 1923 when Edith Thompson was hanged - her husband was killed by her lover in October 1922 - the trial was a few weeks later in December where it was established that she influenced her lover and even though she did not physically carry out the murder she was convicted. There had been the infamous John Christie case – Christie was certainly guilty of six gruesome murders – he was tried in June 1953 and hanged in July 1953. But Timothy Evans had been already been hanged in 1950 for a murder that it had become clear Christie had committed. Timothy Evans was cleared of this murder in 1965 and posthumously pardoned.

There were other hideous errors: Mahmood Mattan had been hanged in 1952 and following years of campaigning he was declared innocent in 1998; Derek Bentley was hanged for his part in the shooting of a police officer even though it was known that he had learning disabilities and had not handled the gun – his “partner in crime” (who had fired the gun) was given a prison sentence as he was too young to face execution. The public had been greatly disturbed by the Ruth Ellis conviction – she shot her lover and though there was considerable evidence to demonstrate that she was emotionally unstable at the time, she was also hanged in July 1955.

But the repeal of Capital Punishment has not stopped great injustices being committed. In the last thirty years there have been many now infamous cases: Stephen Dowling imprisoned wrongly for 28 years; the Birmingham Six; Judith Ward in jail for 18 years; the Guildford Four and Jerry Maguire served 15 years; the Bridgewater Four – 18 years (though one man died in jail after only 2 years); Sean Hodgson served 27 years and Stefan Kiszko served 16 years and sadly died a broken man within a year of freedom.

The list goes on and each “case” represents human tragedy compounded by an antiquated legal system which has resisted reform and is somehow insulated against scrutiny. Too many convictions have been due to fabricated evidence and careless investigation on the part of the police.

The public is now able to access information regarding crimes and criminals on the internet – there is a wealth of detail available on dedicated sites which may even include post mortem results and even photographs of crime scenes. Mainly this is good – it leads to so-called “transparency” where we, the Great British Public, can become fully informed. There is a downside to all of this – the public is led to think that all information is available and this is simply not true. Some information regarding the Jeremy Bamber case is locked away under the rules of “PII” not only from the public but even from Jeremy’s Defence lawyers – in total 340,000 documents and 259 photographs are withheld. Jeremy has been in prison for 26 years for a crime he could not possibly have committed. There was absolutely no forensic evidence against him – all the evidence was circumstantial and witness statements that were demonstrably inaccurate.

The tragic deaths at White House Farm in August 1985 took from Jeremy a family who he loved as well as his freedom. Scott Lomax wrote the excellent book “Jeremy Bamber: Evil, almost beyond belief” which is certainly a very good introduction to the case. The available evidence totally supports Jeremy’s innocence and even now more evidence is coming to light despite Essex Police and the relatives having destroyed items which could have helped at the time of the trial and they even fabricated evidence too. There are many people who should truly hang their heads in shame for their part in this travesty. What started as a relatively simple but devastating family tragedy has turned into one of the gravest miscarriages of justice that this country has ever seen.

There’s another worrying aspect to this case – in 1985 Care in the Community was being introduced – the Great British Public was already concerned at the prospect of mad people being loose in the streets – the last thing the Establishment wanted was a family to be wiped out by a poor lady inadequately treated for schizophrenia. There was a great deal of money to be made from the new plans for the mentally ill – there were many psychiatric hospitals on prime building sites and many property developers were rubbing their hands with glee at the prospect of the profits ahead. There have been many terrible incidents where mentally ill women have murdered their children during the past 25 years – Sheila was sadly the first. The Establishment had many reasons to find Jeremy Bamber guilty.

I had been initially a little nervous about writing to Jeremy – although I had no doubt about his innocence I was worried that my name and address might end up in the wrong hands – but after a little procrastination I plucked up the courage and wrote a card and enclosed some stamps and I was astonished when only 3 days later I received a very friendly letter in reply. That was the start of our regular correspondence – letters which contained news of his case and sincere friendship too. I have a lifetime’s experience of people and additionally I trained as a mental health nurse – I’ve never heard or read anything from Jeremy which has given me a moment’s doubt about his innocence. We speak on the phone regularly which of course has added a valuable dimension to our friendship not least his sense of humour. Jeremy is never self-absorbed despite his cruel circumstances and he always remembers to ask about my dear old uncle and even my dog. With little preamble I’ve asked Jeremy very direct questions about that night’s events – there’s never any hesitation in answering nor is there any hint that he resents such enquiry. I’ve seen it stated that Jeremy is arrogant – he is not – he is very intelligent, very loyal, very kind and very sensitive and he brings those qualities to his friendships. In short, and as has been said before, Jeremy is a very special yet ordinary man in truly extraordinary and outrageous circumstances.

I’m proud to call him My Friend.