Chief exec of miscarriage of justice body quits

The head of the body responsible for investigating potential miscarriage of justices in England, Wales and Northern Ireland has resigned following months of criticism.

Karen Kneller stood down as chief executive of the embattled Criminal Cases Review Commission (CCRC) after 12 years in the role.

There had been calls for her to resign when the CCRC admitted “failing” Andrew Malkinson, who spent 17 years in prison for a crime he did not commit despite serious concerns the evidence against him was flawed.

In May, the justice select committee said the organisation had shown an “inability to learn from its own mistakes” on Ms Kneller’s watch and called for her to go.

She has not commented since her departure was confirmed.

Dame Vera Baird, who was appointed chair of the CCRC last month and tasked with leading a review of it, said: “The CCRC has a vital role to play in the criminal justice system, but confidence in the organisation has been badly damaged. Confidence in our work must be restored.”

Ms Kneller’s resignation is the second highest profile departure at the review body this year.

In January, Helen Pitcher quit as CCRC chair after an independent panel found it had let Mr Malkinson down.

The 59-year-old was accused of raping a woman in Greater Manchester in 2003, and later jailed for life despite no DNA linking him to the crime. He was released in December 2020.

While Mr Malkinson was in jail, the CCRC twice rejected his submissions that he was innocent – the second of which was after Mrs Pitcher became chair.

His case was not referred to the Court of Appeal until January 2023, a full 20 years since being wrongly accused, and he was fully exonerated in the July of that year.

An independent review of his case found Mr Malkinson would have been released a decade earlier had the CCRC sought new evidence.

The crime he was accused of was later linked to another suspect via DNA testing, which the review found could have happened sooner if the CCRC had intervened.

As a result of Mr Malkinson’s appeal, the CCRC is reviewing thousands of cases it had previously rejected as worthy of consideration in which DNA evidence could cast doubt on a conviction.

Matt Foot of legal charity Appeal, which represented Mr Malkinson when he successfully challenged his conviction in the courts, said Ms Kneller’s resignation was “long overdue”.

He continued: “Ultimately, a completely fresh senior leadership team – with a track record of challenging injustice – is required for the CCRC to become effective.”

Amanda Pearce, casework operations director at the CCRC, has been appointed interim chief executive.