An earlier appeal against Hall’s conviction for stabbing to death the 79-year-old at her home in Boydlands, Capel St Mary, in December 2001, was turned down by the Court of Appeal in January this year.
Now, in what is being termed by his supporters as an “unusual step” the commission has agreed to meet Hall’s legal team later this month to discuss a further application.
Hall’s appeal was based on expert testimony challenging the fibre evidence which led to his conviction at Norwich Crown Court in early 2003.
However, in a renewed bid to get his case back before the appeal court, his wife Stephanie, from Ipswich, said she felt further evidence based around DNA, other viable suspects and CCTV had been unearthed.
Mrs Hall said: “We acknowledge that it is an unusual step for the commission to meet with solicitors and applicants.
“We will be discussing the basis of a future application. We are really grateful for this opportunity and feel it will be both helpful and useful before the submission of an application.
“There were a number of ongoing inquiries which were not concluded prior to the previous referral (by the CCRC). Therefore we wish to discuss with them the way forward with Simon’s case and the grounds which we will be inviting them to consider.”
Hall’s team were disappointed with the appeal judges’ decision, as they felt their expert textile analyst Tiernan Coyle had cast doubt on the fibre evidence.
The court heard his conviction relied on the rarity and identical nature of fibre evidence found at Mrs Albert’s home and at Hall’s parents’ house in Snowcroft, where he was living at the time of the murder.
Michael Mansfield, QC, representing Hall, said the trial jury had been inadvertently misled over how rare and indistinguishable the fibres found at the two locations were.
However, Simon Spence, QC, representing the Crown, said an expert from the Forensic Science Service had used two different techniques to confirm the original finding that the fibres were identical. He added an independent analyst had backed this conclusion.
http://www.eveningstar.co.uk/news/capel_st_mary_simon_hall_s_team_in_new_bid_for_murder_appeal_1_1118359
Now, in what is being termed by his supporters as an “unusual step” the commission has agreed to meet Hall’s legal team later this month to discuss a further application.
Hall’s appeal was based on expert testimony challenging the fibre evidence which led to his conviction at Norwich Crown Court in early 2003.
However, in a renewed bid to get his case back before the appeal court, his wife Stephanie, from Ipswich, said she felt further evidence based around DNA, other viable suspects and CCTV had been unearthed.
Mrs Hall said: “We acknowledge that it is an unusual step for the commission to meet with solicitors and applicants.
“We will be discussing the basis of a future application. We are really grateful for this opportunity and feel it will be both helpful and useful before the submission of an application.
“There were a number of ongoing inquiries which were not concluded prior to the previous referral (by the CCRC). Therefore we wish to discuss with them the way forward with Simon’s case and the grounds which we will be inviting them to consider.”
Hall’s team were disappointed with the appeal judges’ decision, as they felt their expert textile analyst Tiernan Coyle had cast doubt on the fibre evidence.
The court heard his conviction relied on the rarity and identical nature of fibre evidence found at Mrs Albert’s home and at Hall’s parents’ house in Snowcroft, where he was living at the time of the murder.
Michael Mansfield, QC, representing Hall, said the trial jury had been inadvertently misled over how rare and indistinguishable the fibres found at the two locations were.
However, Simon Spence, QC, representing the Crown, said an expert from the Forensic Science Service had used two different techniques to confirm the original finding that the fibres were identical. He added an independent analyst had backed this conclusion.
http://www.eveningstar.co.uk/news/capel_st_mary_simon_hall_s_team_in_new_bid_for_murder_appeal_1_1118359
