Gregory v United Kingdom
A judge's firm warning to a jury after a note suggesting possible racial bias was enough to ensure a fair trial.
Facts
Mr Gregory, who was black, was tried for robbery. During the jury's deliberations, the jury sent the judge a note saying jury showing racial overtones, one member to be excused. The judge consulted counsel and then gave the jury a firm direction to decide the case only on the evidence and to put aside any prejudice. The jury convicted Mr Gregory. He argued that he had not had a fair trial before an impartial tribunal, as required by article 6 of the European Convention on Human Rights.
Legal principle
The European Court of Human Rights held that there was no breach of article 6. The note was ambiguous, and it was not clear that it referred to racial bias against the defendant. The judge had dealt with it carefully and appropriately, by consulting counsel and giving a clear and forceful direction to the jury, which was sufficient to dispel any objectively justified doubts about the jury's impartiality. The case is usually contrasted with Sander v United Kingdom.
Related cases on juries
- Attorney General v Dallas [2012] EWHC 156 (Admin), [2012] 1 WLR 991
- Attorney General v Fraill [2011] EWCA Crim 1570, [2012] 1 Cr App R 1
- Bushell's Case (1670) Vaughan 135
- Hanif and Khan v United Kingdom (2012) 55 EHRR 16
- R v Abdroikov [2007] UKHL 37, [2007] 1 WLR 2679
- R v Ford [1989] QB 868
- R v Karakaya [2005] EWCA Crim 346, [2005] 2 Cr App R 5
- R v McKenna [1960] 1 QB 411
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