Judge throws out ‘false identity’ case

A criminal case against a man accused of perverting the course of justice by lying to police about his identity has been thrown out of court, nearly eight years after he was convicted under a false name for possession of 0.3 grams of cannabis resin.

Chief Justice Anthony Dudley stayed the case after concluding that allowing it to continue would be an abuse of process.

In the judgment, Mr Justice Dudley also frowned at a pact made between a defence lawyer and police to reduce the seriousness of a charge in exchange for a guilty plea and the acceptance of a sentence linked to the cost of the police investigation.

Sentencing, the judge said, was a matter solely for the courts.

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