Something disturbing and rotten in our justice system

[On Monday 14 December, Justice for Megrahi circulated a letter headed The Crown Office - cause for serious concern? This morning JfM has issued a follow-up press release. It reads as follows:]

AS THE TWENTY-SEVENTH LOCKERBIE ANNIVERSARY LOOMS, PROMINENT SCOTS SPEAK OUT

“... something disturbing and rotten in our justice system”

A letter this week by Justice for Megrahi (JfM) to 350 of Scotland’s ‘great and good’, informing them that bias and prejudice have disqualified the Crown Office from assessing a major new Police Scotland report into nine serious criminal allegations related to Lockerbie, has elicited outspoken responses which show Lockerbie, after twenty-seven years, is still an issue of the highest importance that the Crown Office can no longer be trusted to deal with.

Hugh Andrew, Managing Director of publishers Birlinn, states: “Behaviour such as the clear leaking of information by the crown prosecution service to sympathetic journalists, the pointblank refusal to accept the implications of a damning report and the refusal to consider clearly relevant new evidence not available at the time of trial and independently verified, is a pointer to something disturbing and rotten in our justice system. In a case of such importance it is essential that all evidence is fairly and openly considered. That every form of subterfuge seems deployed to prevent this begs some fairly ominous questions.”

Justice campaigner and retired police officer Iain McKie, a member of the Justice for Megrahi committee, commented: “A major Police Scotland report is about to be published which could point to Mr Megrahi’s innocence and possible criminal acts by former Crown Office personnel and prosecution witnesses. Surely this disqualifies the Lord Advocate and Crown Office from coming anywhere near this report.”

He added: “Our SNP government was elected by people like myself who were searching for more honest, open and transparent government. It is a matter of some regret to me that Michael Matheson seems to have turned his back on us in support of the arrogant and totally unjust stance being adopted by the Lord Advocate and Crown Office.”

Patriot and Nationalist Ian Hamilton QC observes: “I don't think there's a lawyer in Scotland who now believes Mr Megrahi was justly convicted.”

Prominent Scots author James Robertson, also a JfM member, states: “The Lord Advocate/ Crown Office have described the JfM complainers as ‘conspiracy theorists’, dismissed the allegations as ‘defamatory and entirely unfounded’ and ‘deliberately false and misleading’, have acted publicly to underline Mr Megrahi’s guilt and have threatened the integrity of the ongoing police enquiry. What more need I say.”

One of the most distinguished of Scotland's criminal court solicitors and a member of JfM,Len Murray, observes: “The Lord Advocate/Crown Office have refused to have a prosecutor totally independent of them appointed to assess the report and decide on any prosecution and the Scottish Government has refused to act to protect the public interest. It seems clear that these authorities are intent on burying the findings of this report.”