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Architect of Lockerbie trial attacks guilty verdict
By Jenny Booth
THE Scots law professor who masterminded the Lockerbie trial in the
Netherlands has launched a scathing attack on the judges for finding the
defendant guilty on "very, very weak" evidence.
Professor Robert Black described the decision by three Scottish judges to
convict Abdelbaset Ali Mohmed Al Megrahi, a Libyan secret serviceman, of the
murder of 270 people when Pan Am flight 103 exploded over Lockerbie as
"astonishing". He warned that the bomber stands a better-than-average chance
of being acquitted on appeal.
Professor Black, a former judge with 13 years' experience and Scotland's
leading expert on criminal procedure and evidence, said that in his view the
Crown case had failed to comply with strict Scottish legal rules - tougher
than English law - that evidence be corroborated.
Professor Black said: "I thought this was a very, very weak circumstantial
case. I am absolutely astounded, astonished. I was extremely reluctant to
believe that any Scottish judge would convict anyone, even a Libyan, on the
basis of such evidence." Professor Black's reservations will fuel the
concerns of bereaved families that, despite the criminal trial, the truth is
yet to emerge about the Lockerbie bombing.
At a hushed press conference in London the day after the verdict, Martin
Cadman, whose son Bill died in the bombing, said: "We have our doubts about
the guilt of Megrahi and that will have to remain the subject of any appeal
to come. The appeal will hold us up for another year or so before we can have
an inquiry into the truth of who was responsible and what the motive was."
The chief spokesman for the families, Dr Jim Swire, a former army explosives
expert, produced a bomb timer to illustrate why he found it hard to believe
the Crown's version of events. He said that the timing of the explosion, 38
minutes after the aircraft took off from Heathrow and while the jet was still
over land, made the bomb more likely to have been detonated by a crude
pressure-activated timer, such as those used by the Palestinian terror group
operating in Germany under the command of Ahmed Jibril, than by a
sophisticated 999-hour electronic timer of the type bought by Libyan secret
services from MeBo, a Swiss arms firm.
Professor Black's concerns are likely to be seized upon by Colonel Muammar
Gaddafi to back claims of Libya's innocence of the bombing. Professor Black
devised the unique format of the Lockerbie trial, which was held in a neutral
country without a jury, and campaigned alongside the bereaved families for
its acceptance by Libya, America and Britain.
Megrahi has a further 11 days to lodge an appeal, which would probably be
heard in the same courtroom in Camp Zeist, in front of a bench of five
judges, over about two weeks in late summer. The appeal bench is expected to
be chaired by Lord Cullen, Scotland's second most senior judge. Under
ordinary circumstances, barely a handful of appeals against conviction ever
succeed in the Scottish courts, but Professor Black said that the unique
circumstances of the trial meant that Megrahi stood a better chance.
- Re: [CTRL] Architect of Lockerbie trial attacks guilt... William Shannon
