QUOTE OF THE DAY: "I have vindication of a kind, but not justice; that is why I will never give up"
Derek Bromley, 14 December 2023
———————————————————
PASSAGE OF THE DAY: "The majority, however, denied him even permission to have his appeal considered, and found nothing 'fresh and compelling' about the evidence given in the SA Supreme Court, Court of Appeal, by five experts in 2017/18. Those experts agreed, that the critical witness at trial was inherently unreliable, and of course at the trial in 1985, the jury did not have the benefit of that evidence, in fact, they, the trial judge, the prosecutor and the defendants themselves had none of this knowledge in mind, as they the verdict was given and the crushing sentence was delivered to two men. There is something seriously baffling, about courts passing over the evidence of eminent expert witnesses; dismissing its reliability, its substance and its high probative value."
—————————————————————————
PASSAGE TWO OF THE DAY: "The dissenting judgment speaks: "Derek Bromley is a very, very strong person. Rather than being over-taken by the devastating result, he recognizes the minority judgment as a partial vindication and a validation of his nearly 40 year long struggle. The dissenting judgment packs a punch. Without reservation, it concludes that from the first hearing in September of 2021, ' . . . a miscarriage of justice loomed very large.' The minority would have granted special leave to appeal; they would have granted the appeal; they would have quashed the conviction and entered an order for acquittal. "The absence of any substantial corroboration of Mr Carter's evidence on the essential facts which the jury needed to accept in order to convict the applicant, . . . plainly establishes that the applicant's conviction was a substantial miscarriage of justice. There is a 'significant possibility . . . that an innocent person has been convicted'". Edelman and Steward JJ; They came to the correct conclusion, and if it had been dealt with by the original court of three, Derek would have been home since the 13th of December, and a truly vindicated man."
---------------------------------------------------
POST: "High Court decision 13 December 2023," by Robyn Milera, published on her Blog 'Bringing Justice, on December 17, 2023.
On 13 December, the High Court handed down it's decision in the matter of Bromley v the King.
It was a very distressing result. "The sickening reality for the man on the receiving end of it, is of course, the continuation of an injustice and the ongoing uncertainty about the future, in a life that has been spent absorbing uncertainty and institutional control pre-dating his birth.
Justice Edelman and Justice Steward jointly stated that 'there is a significant possibility that an innocent man has been convicted'. They would have acquitted him and he would have walked away from this nightmare last Wednesday.
The majority, however, denied him even permission to have his appeal considered, and found nothing 'fresh and compelling' about the evidence given in the SA Supreme Court, Court of Appeal, by five experts in 2017/18.
Those experts agreed, that the critical witness at trial was inherently unreliable, and of course at the trial in 1985, the jury did not have the benefit of that evidence, in fact, they, the trial judge, the prosecutor and the defendants themselves had none of this knowledge in mind, as they the verdict was given and the crushing sentence was delivered to two men.
There is something seriously baffling, about courts passing over the evidence of eminent expert witnesses; dismissing its reliability, its substance and its high probative value.
A conglomeration of "matters of small detail" has been woven into the reasoning, to conclude that there was no need for an unreliable witness to be corroborated on the critical issues to be proven.
The two judgments could not have been more polarized. And the law in action has become incoherent to me. It is a incomprehensible and as random as a lottery.
The continued incarceration of Derek Bromley is unjustifiable, for so many reasons.
The dissenting judgment speaks;
Derek Bromley is a very, very strong person. Rather than being over-taken by the devastating result, he recognizes the minority judgment as a partial vindication and a validation of his nearly 40 year long struggle.
The dissenting judgment packs a punch. Without reservation, it concludes that from the first hearing in September of 2021, ' . . . a miscarriage of justice loomed very large.'
The minority would have granted special leave to appeal; they would have granted the appeal; they would have quashed the conviction and entered an order for acquittal.
"The absence of any substantial corroboration of Mr Carter's evidence on the essential facts which the jury needed to accept in order to convict the applicant, . . . plainly establishes that the applicant's conviction was a substantial miscarriage of justice. There is a 'significant possibility . . . that an innocent person has been convicted'".
Edelman and Steward JJ
They came to the correct conclusion, and if it had been dealt with by the original court of three, Derek would have been home since the 13th of December, and a truly vindicated man.
How is Derek?
He is dealing with an awareness of entrapment - the man's been in prison for nearly 40 years, so an awareness of entrapment at this point is deep impact stuff - a feeling that threatens to accuse him afresh. He is a better warrior than to succumb to that and he is positive and focused on the future.
"I have vindication of a kind, but not justice; that is why I will never give up"
Derek Bromley, 14 December 2023
It's not over yet. The continuation of an injustice can only lead to seeking after it with greater resolve and the eventual receiving of it.
I hope that he'll have parole soon - a small consolation, but an ok platform from which to march on.
Extra commentary here. Thanks to Andrew Urban and Dr Robert Moles
House-keeping - bringingjustice2020
I will soon begin writing Series Two of the Bromley Conviction, which I have postponed deliberately so that i could write forward, knowing the issues that sync with the recent High Court decision.
I'll revisit the appeal journey under South Australia's legislated new right of appeal.
Is the ground-breaking law, together with the present appeals process sufficient to deal with the risk and occurrence of wrongful convictions? I don't think so!"
The entire post can be read at:
https://mail.google.com/mail/u/0/#inbox/FMfcgzGwJJbPxMfncbfxgPDJSLLMvbbW
PUBLISHER'S NOTE: I am monitoring this case/issue/resource. Keep your eye on the Charles Smith Blog for reports on developments. The Toronto Star, my previous employer for more than twenty incredible years, has put considerable effort into exposing the harm caused by Dr. Charles Smith and his protectors - and into pushing for reform of Ontario's forensic pediatric pathology system. The Star has a "topic" section which focuses on recent stories related to Dr. Charles Smith. It can be found at: http://www.thestar.com/topic/charlessmith. Information on "The Charles Smith Blog Award"- and its nomination process - can be found at: http://smithforensic.blogspot.com/2011/05/charles-smith-blog-award-nominations.html Please send any comments or information on other cases and issues of interest to the readers of this blog to: hlevy15@gmail.com. Harold Levy: Publisher: The Charles Smith Blog;
SEE BREAKDOWN OF SOME OF THE ON-GOING INTERNATIONAL CASES (OUTSIDE OF THE CONTINENTAL USA) THAT I AM FOLLOWING ON THIS BLOG, AT THE LINK BELOW: HL
https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/120008354894645705/47049136857587929
FINAL WORD: (Applicable to all of our wrongful conviction cases): "Whenever there is a wrongful conviction, it exposes errors in our criminal legal system, and we hope that this case — and lessons from it — can prevent future injustices.
Lawyer Radha Natarajan;
Executive Director: New England Innocence Project;
—————————————————————————————————
FINAL, FINAL WORD: "Since its inception, the Innocence Project has pushed the criminal legal system to confront and correct the laws and policies that cause and contribute to wrongful convictions. They never shied away from the hard cases — the ones involving eyewitness identifications, confessions, and bite marks. Instead, in the course of presenting scientific evidence of innocence, they've exposed the unreliability of evidence that was, for centuries, deemed untouchable." So true!
Christina Swarns: Executive Director: The Innocence Project;
------------------------------------------------------------------
YET ANOTHER FINAL WORD:
David Hammond, one of Broadwater’s attorneys who sought his exoneration, told the Syracuse Post-Standard, “Sprinkle some junk science onto a faulty identification, and it’s the perfect recipe for a wrongful conviction.
https://deadline.com/2021/11/alice-sebold-lucky-rape-conviction-overturned-anthony-broadwater-123488014
