Barrister backing conviction battle

announced it would not be referring the conviction to the Court of Appeal.

The Commission said it had been “unable to identify new evidence that is capable of raising a real possibility that the Court of Appeal would quash the conviction.”

This week Mr Lawson said the barrister would continue to examine key areas of the case, including the nine-man identity parade at which a dying PC Jagger picked out Moore.

Mr Lawson said the barrister would be looking in detail at “several strands” of the case with a view to putting fresh evidence before the CCRC.

He said Alfred Moore’s daughters were aware of the barrister’s involvement in the case.

“His daughters are very grateful that he and others now share their beliefs in their dad’s innocence and are working to that end. Whilst optimistic, they are still understandably cautious.”

In 2013 retired judge Patrick Robertshaw, of Scissett, published a book on the case in which he concluded that the wrong man was executed.

Mr Robertshaw, whose book is called No Smoking Gun, said at the time: “By the standards of the day, it was inevitable from the moment that Alfred Moore was identified at Pc Jagger’s bedside that he was going to be convicted.

“But by the standards of today, I don’t think the case would get off the ground.

“In 1951 no-one recognised the problems with visual identification, it was regarded as strong evidence.

“Nowadays, when juries are faced with visual evidence, they are given various warnings about the problems with it.

“I don’t believe Moore’s conviction could have happened today.”