Stokes cleared – and straight back into England team
He walks straight back into team – despite failing to apologise for nightclub brawl
PROSECUTORS were left facing questions last night after a jury took just two and a half hours to clear England cricketer Ben Stokes of affray over his part in a violent street brawl.
Stokes, 27, and his co-defendant Ryan Ali, 28, were unanimously found not guilty following a week-long trial at Bristol Crown Court.
They had denied the charge, which arose from a fracas outside a Bristol nightclub last September several hours after England had played a one-day international against the West Indies.
Video showed Stokes – who admitted he had spent the evening drinking lager, vodka and shots – hitting Mr Ali and former soldier Ryan Hale, 27, with such force that both were knocked unconscious.
Following his acquittal, and despite his failure to apologise publicly for his involvement in the altercation, Stokes was immediately restored to the England squad for Saturday’s Test against India.
It can now be reported that a series of mistakes marred the proceedings, despite the Crown Prosecution Service consulting the most senior counsel on how to handle the sensitive case. The CPS was forced to deny attempting to ‘highlight’ Mr Stokes because of his standing as an international cricketer. Prosecution mistakes included:
Helping police decide that fellow England international Alex Hales should not be charged, despite CCTV appearing to show him kicking a prostrate Mr Ali three times in the head;
Charging Stokes with a single count of affray, an accusation they acknowledged was inappropriate and inadequate only on the morning of the trial;
Failing to meet the basic level of evidence required to demonstrate a case against Mr Hale, who was cleared at the direction of the judge before his defence even began;
The CPS also failed to explain why gay couple Kai Barry and William O’Connor were not called to give evidence. They had insisted Stokes protected them from verbal abuse.
Stokes, who had admitted drinking heavily but denied being ‘really very drunk’ had insisted in court: ‘Everything I did that night, I did in defence of myself.’
He said he had acted to protect Mr Barry and Mr O’Connor from homophobic abuse.
Nottinghamshire batsman Hales, 29, had been credited by the prosecution with attempting to calm the ruckus until footage of him ‘stamping’ on Mr Ali emerged in evidence. In police bodycam footage of Stokes’ arrest, Hales appeared to lie to PC Stacey Alway, claiming he had missed the fight.
Despite the severity of the violence he allegedly used, and his apparent lies to police, Hales was not arrested or charged, merely interviewed under caution.
In his closing speech, Stokes’ barrister Gordon Cole QC went as far as to suggest that Hales could have been responsible for Mr Ali’s injuries, which included a fractured eye socket. The CPS said it was an Avon and Somerset Police decision not to pursue Hales.
On the morning the trial began, prosecutors sought to lay two additional, more serious charges against Stokes to reflect the injuries suffered by Mr Hale and Mr Ali. But Judge Peter Blair QC said introducing the counts of assault occasioning actual bodily harm, an offence carrying a sentence of up to five years in jail, would be unfair on Stokes and his legal team at such a late stage.
The decision to charge Stokes and his co-defendants with affray lay with treasury counsel Alison Morgan, who has acted in highprofile cases including the prosecution of Stephen Lawrence’s killers.
But her decision is under scrutiny following the last- minute attempt to introduce the extra charges and the acquittal of Mr Hale halfway through the trial.
Jurors may have been baffled by the absence of Mr Barry and Mr O’Connor, who maintain that Stokes defended them against homophobic abuse. Sources said the CPS deemed them unreliable.
As the jury, who deliberated for two hours and 34 minutes, announced the not guilty verdicts, Stokes’ chest heaved and he staggered forward, tears welling in his eyes, before he shook Mr Ali’s hand. In the public gallery, Stokes’ wife Clare wept and embraced his agent Neil Fairbrother.
Outside court, Mr Stokes’ solicitor Paul Lunt told reporters: ‘Today’s verdict represents the end of an 11-month ordeal for Ben during which time he has had to maintain his silence at times when many on social media, and certain parts of the Press, predetermined his guilt long before the trial began.
‘The jury’s decision ... fairly reflects the truth of what happened in Bristol that night.’
A CPS spokesman said: ‘A decision to charge this case was made following detailed consideration of the evidence and in accordance with the Code for Crown Prosecutors. The function of the CPS is not to decide whether a person is guilty of a criminal offence, but to make fair, independent and objective assessments about whether it is appropriate to present charges for a jury to consider. We respect the jury’s decision. The CPS keeps cases under continual review.
‘We selected the charge of affray at the outset in accordance with the Code. Upon further review we
‘End of an 11-month ordeal for him’
considered that additional assault charges would be appropriate.’
Avon and Somerset Police said: ‘ Early investigative advice was sought from the CPS in relation to Alex Hales’ involvement in the incident and a decision was subsequently made at a senior level to take no further action against him.’ The England and Wales Cricket Board said: ‘Now that the legal proceedings have concluded, the disciplinary process for Ben Stokes and Alex Hales can be scheduled by the Cricket Discipline Commission.
‘Ben Stokes will now join the England squad for the third Specsavers Test against India. In due course, there will be a range of matters for the board to fully consider.’