‘Evidence failures mean innocent are in jail’

INNOCENT people are in prison due to police disclosure failings, the justice watchdog has warned as he claimed the problem is getting worse, particularly in rape cases.

Richard Foster, the departing chairman of the Criminal Cases Review Commission, said social media data is not being analysed properly, which has resulted in miscarriages of justice. He also warned that the CPS and police are overstretched and that there was a lack of trained investigators to look into cases properly.

Mr Foster’s remarks follow warnings about the way mobile phone data is used in rape cases where the suspect claims what occurred was consensual.

Speaking to the BBC, Mr Foster said: “I think it’s getting worse [the problem of disclosure]. I think particularly in rape, where it turns on who you be- lieve. Social media data is of the essence.”

Mr Foster called for an urgent review of disclosure processes to discover whether innocent people are behind bars because evidence was withheld or not used properly at trial.

The CPS has refused to conduct a wider review of all cases, claiming its previous investigation satisfied concerns.