The Criminal Cases Review Commission (CCRC) has officially referred the first appeal against conviction of a Post Office Capture user to the Court of Appeal, following a decision made months ago.
This appeal pertains to the case of Patricia Owen, who passed away in 2003. Despite pleading not guilty to the theft of £6,000, she was convicted in 1998 and sentenced to six months’ imprisonment, suspended for two years, at Canterbury Crown Court.
In July of this year, it was announced that the CCRC had chosen to refer Owen’s case for appeal, but the formal referral was not made until yesterday (15 October).
Simultaneously, the CCRC stated that four appeals against convictions of former Capture users would not be referred, as they did not meet the statutory test for referral.
“Unlike Mrs. Owen’s case, a committee of three commissioners determined that four of these cases did not present a real possibility of the conviction being overturned,” explained the CCRC.
Regarding the delay in formally referring Owen’s case, the CCRC clarified: “There is always a timeframe between a committee decision and the actual referral to the appellate court.”
Neil Hudgell, Owen’s lawyer at Hudgell Solicitors, expressed optimism that the formal referral of her case and the new evidence could aid other former Capture users in clearing their names.
Capture, which preceded Fujitsu’s Horizon system, was utilized in Post Office branches during the 1990s to replace paper-based accounting. Similar to the contentious Horizon system linked to the Post Office scandal, where subpostmasters were held responsible for unexplained losses, some Capture users faced prosecution for financial offenses.
The Capture controversy came to light in January last year through ITV drama Mr Bates vs the Post Office, which showcased the struggles of subpostmasters affected by the Horizon system.
During the same month, former MP Kevan Jones highlighted injustices resulting from Capture losses, prompting a campaign that eventually led to the government committing to providing financial redress and justice for subpostmasters impacted by Capture issues by December 2024.
Hudgell emphasized the significance of Owen’s appeal referral, stating, “This is a pivotal moment for those impacted by Capture, as it marks the first conviction being formally referred to the Court of Appeal with compelling evidence suggesting wrongful convictions.”
He added, “Our priority now is to bring Mrs. Owen’s case to the Court of Appeal and overturn her conviction. With the newfound evidence, we aim to pave the way for others prosecuted based on Capture evidence to clear their names, mirroring the outcomes with Horizon cases.”
Dame Vera Baird KC, chair of the CCRC, mentioned, “We have over 30 applications to refer Post Office convictions predating Horizon, with many cases currently under active investigation. Some of these older cases lack crucial paperwork, dates, or information.”
“Under section 17 of the Criminal Appeal Act 1995, we have compelled the Post Office to provide all available material in each case where possible,” she added.
Computer Weekly initially exposed the scandal in 2009, spotlighting the challenges faced by seven subpostmasters due to the Horizon accounting software.
For more information on the Post Office scandal, refer to: Everything you need to know about the Post Office scandal.
