The Criminal Case Review Commission (CCRC) has been told to urgently tackle delays in potential miscarriages of justices in a damning inspection, launched after a man wrongfully convicted of rape served 17 years in prison.
Officials from HM Crown Prosecution Service Inspectorate (HMCPSI) discovered too many appeals handled by the miscarriages of justice review body had drifted without justification, each leaving “a real person waiting longer for answers they deserve”.
Inspectors, although finding “sound conclusions” had been reached in 60 cases examined, also told the CCRC to quickly improve its casework quality assurance, which was found to be inconsistent and lacking structure.
A lack of focus, the HMCPSI said, opened unnecessary investigative avenues, which delayed cases. Improvements must be made to ensure delays do not become “entrenched”, the inspection body concluded.
The inspection was carried out following failings by the CCRC to twice allow a review into the wrongful conviction of Andrew Malkinson, who served 17 years of a life sentence for rape he did not commit.
The scandal led to the resignation of chair Helen Pitcher and was followed by a review by the Justice Select Committee that found the body’s leadership had “shown a remarkable inability to learn from its own mistakes”.
open image in galleryInterim chair Dame Vera Baird then called on the HMCPSI review shortly after she was appointed last year.
Chief inspector Anthony Rogers said:”The CCRC exists for one purpose: to help people who may have been wrongly convicted get their cases properly reviewed. Every delay, every gap in quality assurance, and every case that drifts without justification is a real person waiting longer for answers they deserve.
“This report provides a clear and practical roadmap and addressing these issues will help the CCRC work more efficiently and give applicants greater confidence in how cases are handled.”
The delay in cases being dealt with by the CCRC was highlighted by The Independent two years ago, when more than 1,000 cases involving alleged miscarriages of justice were awaiting permission to appeal.
And last year, Chris Henley KC, a barrister who led an independent review of the CCRC in 2024, warned there was a “fundamental problem” with the appeals system. “It stubbornly wants to stick to the original flawed convicton,” he claimed.
But in the inspection by the HMCPSI, the casework decisions into 60 cases “were ultimately sound and reached the right conclusions in their recommendations to commissioners, the final decision-makers”, the report said.
open image in galleryInspectors, however, said that “several key issues” needed to be urgently addressed to help the CCRC “make better decisions more quickly, become much more efficient and gain greater assurance in the quality of its own casework”.
The report issued 34 recommendations, including developing a casework quality action plan, stepping up scrutiny on long-running cases and providing training to address “individual and organisational learning gaps”.
Among the cases currently being dealt with by the CCRC is a review of Lucy Letby’s convictions. Letby, 35, is serving 15 whole-life prison terms after being convicted of murdering seven babies and attempting to kill another seven at the Countess of Chester hospital.
Her lawyer Mark McDonald told The Independent: “With every passing month, Lucy loses another part of the future she once hoped for—a career, a family, a life. sometimes delay has consequences that no judgment can ever truly repair.
“This case is complex and I know the CCRC are working hard on the application but I hope that soon it reaches a conclusion and the matter is referred back to the Court of Appeal.”