R (Guardian Newspapers Ltd) v Middlesex Crown Court
| Jurisdiction | England & Wales |
| Judgment Date | 14 July 2005 |
| Neutral Citation | [2005] EWHC 2216 (Admin) |
| Date | 14 July 2005 |
| Court | Queen's Bench Division (Administrative Court) |
: [2005] EWHC 2216 (Admin)
Court and Reference: Administrative Court, CO/1624/2005
: Kennedy LJ and Walker J
Appearances: A Nicol QC and A Hudson (instructed by the Legal Department for Guardian Newspapers Ltd) for G; D Rose (instructed by the Treasury Solicitor) for the IPCC
: Whether a member of the IPCC's staff could apply for a production order under Schedule 1 of PACE
: A number of people were injured at a demonstration in Parliament Square which was subject to significant media coverage; over 400 complaints were made about the conduct of the police, including from people who had sustained injuries. The Independent Police Complaints Commission investigated the complaints and sought cooperation from the media.
Under s. 9 of and Sched 1 to the Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984, a constable may apply to a circuit judge for an order to produce journalistic material. Paragraph 19(4) of Sched 3 to the Police Reform Act 2002 provides that designated members of the IPCC's staff have all the powers and privileges of a constable for the purposes of carrying out an investigation; paras 19(6) and (7) of Sched 3 to the 2002 Act allow the Secretary of State to order that provisions of the 1984 Act relating to investigations conducted by police officers could apply, with specified modifications, to investigations conducted by members of IPCC staff.
C, a former police officer working for the IPCC, obtained a production order from a circuit judge, relying on para 19(4) of Sched 3 to the 2002 Act, which covered him; this was challenged by judicial review on the basis that C's power to apply had to derive from paras 19(6) and (7) of Sched 3 to the 2002 Act, which had not been brought into effect. There was also a challenge to the costs order made by the judge (which was limited to the costs incurred by virtue of the application being contested).
1. This is a renewed application for permission to seek judicial review of a decision of Judge Inman, sitting in the crown court at Middlesex Guildhall who, on 24 February of this year, ruled against the claimants under s. 9 of Sched 1 of the Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984. The rulings were incorporated into production orders, dated 1 March 2005, and on 3 March 2005 the judge gave his decision in relation to costs.
2. The background to this matter is that on 15 September 2004 there was a pro-hunt demonstration in Parliament Square. There was trouble from time to time and a number of people were injured. The media was present in force and photographs were taken and much video footage was obtained. There were some 403 complaints about the conduct of the police, 46 of them from people who had sustained injuries.
3. The Independent Police Complaints Commission, created under the Police Reform Act 2002, determined to investigate the complaints. Mr John Cummins, a former police officer and a member of the IPCC staff, was instructed to undertake the investigation. He was able to gather together photographs and video footage, which had been published, but he knew that a lot of material potentially...
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