Bishop wants review over 'miscarriage of justice'

A London bishop has written to the justice secretary about what she describes as a "miscarriage of justice" following the conviction and jailing of a man for murder.

Jason Moore had denied the 2005 fatal stabbing of Robert Darby in east London, but was convicted and jailed for life with a minimum term of 18 years in 2013.

The Bishop of Stepney, the Rt Revd Dr Joanne Grenfell, told Justice Secretary Shabana Mahmood in a letter to take urgent and direct action to review the case, with both men's families believing Moore is innocent.

The Ministry of Justice said it would respond to the letter in due course.

Mr Darby had been found with a stab wound in Ilford on 24 August 2005 and died the following day in hospital.

Bishop Grenfell said in her letter she was approached by both Mr Darby and Moore's families, who live in north and east London, "because they believed that the church would care about an issue of justice".

"In a remarkable display of unity, both families have joined forces to try to quash Jason’s conviction, as they both believe he is innocent of Robert’s murder," she added.

It comes after the justice secretary said Helen Pitcher, who heads up the Criminal Cases Review Commission (CCRC), was "unable to fulfil her duties" following the publication of a review into the case of Andrew Malkinson, whose rape conviction was overturned last year after a 20-year fight.

The bishop argued there had been repeated "failures" by the CCRC in investigating potential miscarriages of justice, including in Moore's case.

She wrote that in his case, these included "lack of DNA evidence, the inconsistencies and unreliability of eyewitness testimony, and the failure to disclose key pieces of information to the defence".

"Jason Moore, like Andrew Malkinson, was convicted solely on eyewitness evidence, with no forensics ever linking him to his supposed crime," Bishop Grenfell added.

"He was picked from a line-up by a single eyewitness, seven years after the crime."

The bishop explained the CCRC rejected Moore's case in 2021, "refusing at first to even to investigate it".

This was "based on a fundamental misunderstanding of the most basic facts", she said.

"In its rejection letter, the CCRC falsely asserted that two eyewitnesses had implicated Jason as Robert Darby's stabber.

"In fact, it was only one eyewitness, with significant credibility problems," she said.

Despite this, she added, the CCRC "refused to order fresh DNA testing and refused to reinterview the witness", and said a local newspaper reporter had found the witness instead, who "then admitted on tape that he had been drunk when he witnessed the stabbing and might have picked out the wrong man".

Bishop Grenfell also highlighted that retired Metropolitan Police detective Steve Hobbs had written in his report to the CCRC there was a "compelling trend of evidence and intelligence that suggest Jason Moore did not stab Robert Darby”.

She ended her letter by saying both she and Moore's sister would be "more than willing to meet" with the minister to discuss the case further.

Speaking after sending the letter, Bishop Grenfell said: “It is not just Jason who maintains his innocence, but his family and the victim’s family.

"That any one of us could be imprisoned under Jason’s circumstances is a disturbing enough thought, but that we would then spend years waiting to even have our case reviewed is harrowing.

"I hope that the government will do what its predecessor did not.”

A CCRC spokesperson said: “We have received an application in relation to this case and a review is under way.

"It would be inappropriate for us to make any further comment at this stage.”

In a statement, the Metropolitan Police said it had reviewed information in relation to the case in 2021, and added the force would "assess any new information that becomes apparent".

"This investigation remains closed, but should the circumstances change, we will assess them and consider the most appropriate way to manage any developments in this investigation.

"The Met has subsequently been informed by the CCRC that the case will not be referred to the Court of Appeal."

The Crown Prosecution Service has also been contacted for a response.

Listen to the best of BBC Radio London on Sounds and follow BBC London on Facebook, X and Instagram. Send your story ideas to [email protected]