Justice after 10 long years: APPEAL’s statement on the Post Office scandal

23 April 2021    

Today the Court of Appeal quashed the convictions of 39 sub-postmasters and postmistresses. They had been privately prosecuted by the Post Office, alongside hundreds of others, for theft and false accounting in the years between 2000 and 2014.   

Although they have steadfastly maintained their innocence, the Post Office had denied that missing money could have been due to technical issues with a newly installed accounting system, Horizon.   

This was manifestly false. The court found multiple glitches with the system. Evidence suggests the Post Office was aware of them but pursued the prosecutions anyway.  

During their decade-long campaign for justice, some of the victims of this miscarriage of justice have died. Others have described how the convictions wreaked havoc on their lives – from prison sentences to bankruptcy and social isolation. One pregnant sub-postmistress gave birth in prison, another took his own life.  

Emily Bolton, Director of APPEAL commented , “it is a scandal that it has taken this long for these people to be vindicated and demonstrates that this country’s system for identifying and rectifying miscarriages of justice is fundamentally broken. Wrongful convictions are emergencies and should be treated as such.   

As we head deeper into the digital age, this case should also be a warning to police and prosecutors that digital evidence is a minefield and any prosecution that relies on it should ensure that the evidence is reviewed by experts for both sides. Otherwise we will be seeing many more of these large-scale miscarriages of justice”.  

Notes to editors:    

1.     APPEAL is a law charity that fights miscarriages of justice and demands reform.  

2.     Emily Bolton is available for interview and further comment at emily@appeal.org.uk   

3.     The full Court of Appeal judgment can be read here: https://www.judiciary.uk/judgments/hamilton-others-v-post-office-limited/