R -v- William Farrell 29/10/2008 

The appellant was charged with an offence of burglary. As he was of no fixed abode, leading up to his trial, he reported to his solicitor's office on a daily basis and was informed of his trail date and the importance of his attendance at the trial. The appellant was further offered funds to pay for his travel but he declined the offer.

The appellant did not attend his trial and the defence counsel invited the judge to request that the police locate the appellant. The judge refused, and in so doing, noted that counsel would no doubt have had a "token" objection. The matter proceeded to trial and the appellant was found guilty and sentenced to three years' imprisonment.

The appellant appealed on the basis that the judged had erred in deciding to proceed to trial in his absence.

In allowing the appeal, it was held that the judge failed to engage in the proper consideration of the principles relating to proceeding in absence (R -v- Jones (Anthony William) (2002) UKHL 5, (2003) 1 AC 1 and R -v- Jones (Anthony William) (2001) EWCA Crim 168, (2001) QB 862. In referring to a "token" objection, the judge had conveyed that he had already made up his mind to proceed to trial in the appellant's absence. The judge failed to consider whether a short adjournment might resolve the matter and given the nature of the trial itself, only a short adjournment may have been necessary. There would have been only limited inconvenience to the witnesses in attendance, as the only witnesses were two police officers who had arrested and interviewed the appellant.

The judge's conclusion was found to be flawed. It was held that it was an extreme step to proceed with a trial in the absence of a defendant. The trial judge was obliged to take more care when determining to proceed in the absence of a defendant.

The conviction was quashed and a re-trial was ordered.

Teresa Murphy is a barrister in Blake Lapthorn's Professional Regulatory team. Please contact her on 0207 814 5403, or email her at teresa.murphy@bllaw.co.uk

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