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Andy Coulson, Rebekah Brooks and others charged

121 replies

NicholasTeakozy · 24/07/2012 13:07

BBC article. Good.

OP posts:
limitedperiodonly · 26/07/2012 23:04

No.

But it's okay IMO as long as you don't say someone is guilty as sin or speculate on evidence such as

lisaro · 26/07/2012 23:06

So IF I thought they were all guilty as sin, I couldn't say? I'll keep quiet then.

Nancy66 · 26/07/2012 23:14

A tad over cautious of MN I'd say....

But it is a complete myth that prefixing a damaging statement with 'allegedly' makes it legally safe.

limitedperiodonly · 26/07/2012 23:23

It would be wrong to say someone is guilty because that's for a jury to decide. But you could always say you can't wait to hear their vigorous defence in court.

That's what they've promised us, after all.

edam · 27/07/2012 10:51

Strange thing is, although they've been charged over phone hacking, there's been nothing more heard about the murder case where the prime suspect was a private detective who did an awful lot of work for the Screws, and the Screws was tailing the officer in charge of the investigation. When this one came out, their very thin excuse was that they thought the guy was having an affair - with his own wife! Clearly bollocks. Strikes me apparently interfering in a murder investigation is quite important - why haven't they been held to account over that and why is no-one reporting developments in that case?

tuckchop · 27/07/2012 11:21

I like the Rebekka hair style....but she should save her explanations for the court. Ordiary people dont get a say pre court hearing.

Viviennemary · 27/07/2012 11:57

Something that really puzzles me about all this. She actually admitted to paying police officers. I heard her on TV. Surely she must realise this is against the law.

edam · 27/07/2012 12:09

Apparently not. She doesn't seem to have done any media law training - AFAIK didn't do NCTJ as she moved from being a features secretary into journalism. Nowt wrong with that, plenty of people do, but most have the common sense to do some media law training, especially if they work in national newspapers and become an editor. That footage of Rebekah merrily admitting to paying cops at the select committee shows Coulson, who did do formal training, stepping in PDQ to correct her. Amazing that MPs didn't follow this up at the time.

lisaro · 27/07/2012 12:15

Actually it may not have been naivety. Deflecting the heat. And a lot more of it will be done during the trial. No doubt there are people who haven't been mentioned in this sweating.

edam · 27/07/2012 12:16

I don't see how it was deflecting the heat - the admission was made a few years ago at a select committee enquiry, not during the present scandal. And confessing to a crime doesn't deflect the heat anyway, does it?

emmieging · 27/07/2012 12:17

Either extreme stupidity/ naivety, or the fact that someone who is THAT self-serving probably thinks they're above the law....

edam · 27/07/2012 12:20

she did, and she was right for a very long time - it was only the fact that the Guardian didn't give up, and that they turned up the Millie Dowler allegations, that meant the chickens eventually made it home to roost. The Met and the government spent years telling people to 'move along, nothing to see here' while the CPS claimed listening to other people's voicemail wasn't a crime.

limitedperiodonly · 27/07/2012 12:44

It is breathtaking stupidity. Most people, not just journalists, would suspect that making payments to police officers and other public officials was at the very least unorthodox and not something to shout about.

The only explanation for such a glaring gap in education is that Rupert Murdoch thought she was so talented in other respects that he expected more knowledgeable executives to provide a safety net.

That's common enough. It's always a bit of a worry, though.

But she's said she didn't do it so we'll have to see.

If it's proved I'd expect to see some officers charged and not just lowly Plods who pass over registration numbers for a drink. I'm surprised no police officer has been charged already. How can you charge someone with alleged bribery if you don't know who they were allegedly bribing? It's not fair and makes the whole thing hard to prove. Hmm.

That Select Committee was a disgrace. Did they mishear that statement or just not want to follow it up?

I was flabbergasted by the brass neck of the chairman John Whittingdale saying the other day something like being glad that we may get to the bottom of this matter now. No, thanks to you and your partisan colleagues Louise Mensch, Therese Coffey and the bloke whose name I keep forgetting.

Nancy66 · 27/07/2012 22:50

Paying police/public officials for information is pretty common business in journalism - always was - still is - always will be....

limitedperiodonly · 27/07/2012 23:08

I know. But there's a world of difference between a drink and a drink.

Some people might get time called on them.

limitedperiodonly · 28/07/2012 09:08

To add: to me it seems unfair and illogical that journalists are charged with allegedly corrupting public officials and there will be none of those public officials in the dock. But it is surely desirable that anyone with a strong case to answer is made to answer it.

the time seems right to do something like this again with the Met

And I'm not going to accept any arguments about how much it would all cost. We should just do it right this time and follow through to the end.

Hundreds of officers were sacked or allowed to retire but not one faced criminal charges. The findings have never been released either. What a surprise.

hackmum · 29/07/2012 17:28

edam: " Strikes me apparently interfering in a murder investigation is quite important - why haven't they been held to account over that and why is no-one reporting developments in that case?"

I've been wondering exactly the same thing. When I first read about this, I thought it was going to be sensational and could even be the one thing that brings down Cameron, purely through his association with Brooks and Coulson. But since then, not a peep. What's going on?

limited - have very much enjoyed your posts on this thread.

Viviennemary · 29/07/2012 19:21

So this paying police officers business. Are we to assume that these payments are declared on tax returns. Hmm

limitedperiodonly · 30/07/2012 21:29

Thanks hackmum

BlackOutTheSun · 02/08/2012 21:56

Rebekah Brooks is formally charged over alleged phone hacking Grin

SerialKipper · 02/10/2012 15:31

Oh yes oh yes oh yes!

Maybe I should start a new thread for this, but I just wanted to let everyone know that "and others" now includes Alex Marunchuk and Jonathan Rees.

I'm not sure how much we can say. But look up the murder of Daniel Morgan and subsequent allegations that someone from NoW was conducting surveillance on Chief Det Supt Dave Cook who led the murder investigation.

Eg: Thornton Heath murder victim was to reveal Met corruption to News of the World

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