Lord Janner could face dementia test, child abuse lawyer says
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Version 0 of 1. The mental capacity of Lord Janner, who will not face child abuse charges because he has dementia, could still be examined by third-party expert witnesses, according to a lawyer representing several of his alleged victims. The move would be initiated as part of a series of civil claims being brought by alleged victims of the Labour peer who have been left distraught by the news that he will not face trial. Richard Scorer, head of the abuse team at Slater & Gordon, which is acting for a number of those looking to bring civil actions, said the prospect of having Janner examined by other experts was under consideration. He said that such a move was not without precedent. “I have certainly dealt with civil claims before where the alleged abuser has claimed to have dementia and we have been able to have them medically examined in relation to that,” Scorer said. Related: Keith Vaz helped kill a 90s probe into the Greville Janner claims: why is he silent now? “It is something we could consider doing. It would depend on the detailed evidence that is available about his medical condition but, potentially, there is provision in the civil law for us to do that. It’s an unusual situation. It doesn’t normally arise in civil cases but it is something we can look at.” The director of public prosecutions, Alison Saunders, said she made the “right decision” not to prosecute Janner despite having said there was enough evidence to charge the 86-year-old peer with 22 sex offences relating to victims who were living in children’s homes in Leicestershire in the 1970s and 1980s. She said the peer’s dementia was so severe he could “play no part in a trial”. Janner’s family say that he is entirely innocent of any wrongdoing. Scorer said his clients would be exercising their right to review Saunders’s decision under the victims’ code. “We anticipate that we will do that very soon,” Scorer said. A judicial review of the Crown Prosecution Service decision not to prosecute is also a possibility. Scorer said all options were being considered. “These allegations have been around for many, many years. It is a grave wrong that they have only recently been investigated. “This should have happened many years ago. Victims are going to take advantage of every avenue they can pursue.” However, any claims they make for compensation face a further obstacle. The peer reportedly transferred ownership of his £2m home to his children in March 2014 – the same month that police raided his Westminster office. Scorer said this would not deter claimants. “If the transfer has happened in the last five years and was done with the intent to deprive potential creditors, there may be ways around this. The question I would ask is: if he actually has dementia, on what basis does he have the capacity to transfer ownership of assets? That is something we will need to explore. On the face of it, the two don’t sit easily together. There appears to be a contradiction between saying on the one hand that ‘he has dementia’ and on the other that he has been able to effect a transfer of assets. If there’s evidence that the transaction has been done to avoid potential creditors that is something we could challenge.” There is speculation that lawyers representing alleged victims may seek closer cooperation from Leicestershire police. “It’s clear that the police are looking at challenging the decision in any event,” Scorer said. “They are clearly very concerned at what has happened.” Scorer said the decision not to prosecute Janner underlined the importance of investigating child abuse claims when they first surface. He said: “It remains a source of great concern and anger to victims that we are in this position. It reinforces the need for serious allegations of child abuse to be properly investigated when first made. “It’s outrageous we are in a situation where he’s been the subject of suspicion for 25 years and it’s only now the state has got round to investigating it. It’s no wonder people are questioning what lies behind that.” |