Malkinson 'could have been cleared 10 years earlier'

DAMNING REPORT FINDS THAT MAN WHO WRONGLY SPENT 17 YEARS IN PRISON WAS FAILED BY MISCARRIAGE OF JUSTICE REVIEW BODY

- NEAL KEELING

ANDREW Malkinson, who spent 17 years in jail after being wrongly convicted of rape, was 'failed' by the miscarriage of justice review body and could have been cleared 10 years earlier, a damning report has found.

A 105-page report by Chris Henley KC, found that the Criminal Cases Review Commission (CCRC) could have spared Mr Malkinson a decade of wrongful imprisonment if it had not 'missed' the opportunity to send his case back to the Court of Appeal in 2009, when DNA evidence made clear 'he might be innocent.

Mr Malkinson said: "The CCRC obstructed my fight for justice and cost me an extra decade wrongly imprisoned." He said in light of the findings there should be a complete overhaul of the body and repeated demands for its chairwoman Helen Pitcher to be sacked. It was reported that new Justice Secretary N Shabana Mahmood was raising questions about Ms Pitcher's position in the wake of the report.