Bobby. wrote Today at 3:17pm:
Sir Eoin O Fada wrote Today at 3:10pm:
19 & 20 Century British Justice was also remarkable for the number of judicial murders.
One that I particularly remember was the execution of a young bloke for murder whilst in company, his accomplice in a crime murdered someone so he was accused of being an accomplice in the crime, found guilty and executed.
The one who committed the actual murder was underage so was imprisoned and escaped execution.
However the executed one was in police custody at the time of the killing so couldn’t have been in company; didn’t help his appeal, the State wanted blood so killed him.
If the Judge was that stupid he should have been hanged for murder.
Look up Sir Roger Casement, they hanged him on the interpretation of what may possibly have been a comma in a Latin language ancient law.
Or the unfortunate private soldier who was an officially armed sentry issued with live ammunition.
He was on guard duty at a military hospital in Occupied Germany.
A van crashed through the barrier and headed for the main hospital doors, in accordance with his written instructions he fired at the van unfortunately killing a German orderly, who like the rest of the occupants was drunk.
His defence was that he was following orders but the Germans insisted that as the Neuremberg War Trials did not accept that as a defence it did not apply, so the British Government upheld the conviction, for political reasons, and executed him.
There are plenty more.