News International phone-hacking trial

[jean]

I'm making a statement, but adding a tag question to invite disagreement from my readers, if any (readers or disagreement).

[teamsaint]

I'm making a statement, but adding a tag question to invite disagreement from my readers, if any (readers or disagreement).

Sorry, I changed my post after some modest research.

Please see my # 120.

In practise, no penalties are ever applied.

http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2011/jul/22/phone-hacking-lying-to-select-committee

Unlike minor parking infringements.

[Stillhomewardbound]

To hear a certain someone in the news speak of feeling 'vindicated' at the outcome of a recent court case is rather akin to hearing the Madam of a brothel speak of her 'shock' and 'horror' that illicit practices were taking place on her premises. Not since Inspector Renault was presented with his winnings from Rick's casino in 'Casablanca', just as he was leading a raid on the joint, have I witnessed such left hand/right hand myopia.

[P. G. Tipps]

To hear a certain someone in the news speak of feeling 'vindicated' at the outcome of a recent court case is rather akin to hearing the Madam of a brothel speak of her 'shock' and 'horror' that illicit practices were taking place on her premises. Not since Inspector Renault was presented with his winnings from Rick's casino in 'Casablanca', just as he was leading a raid on the joint, have I witnessed such left hand/right hand myopia.

I didn't see the point of that tearful, rather self-pitying interview in front of the cameras. Glib phrases like 'feeling vindicated' and 'learning lessons' are so familiar in such statements these days that they carry almost no weight or credibility whatsoever.

Ms Brooks is certainly not guilty as charged. However, the resultant logic of that is that, as boss of the NOTW at the time, she had absolutely no idea of the criminal activity that was going on at the newspaper even though others clearly did.

I doubt many of us would boast in public about feeling vindicated after so demonstrably being found guilty of such mind-boggling managerial incompetence.

[jean]

...such mind-boggling managerial incompetence.

Or else she had told her underlings to just get on with it but to be careful not to tell her how they were obtainling the information.

(It reminds me of how, when my sister decided to get married, my mother insisted that she was not told the date - thus she could finally announce to the relatives the birth of my sister's by now eighteen-month-old daughter, saying 'She got married and never even told me when!')

[french frank]

I see Coulson and Rolf Harris are both being sentenced today. The Harris story eclipses the Coulson one atm.

[Serial_Apologist]

I see Coulson and Rolf Harris are both being sentenced today. The Harris story eclipses the Coulson one atm.

An apparently unrepentant Harris gets 5 years 9 months in the slammer; still waiting on Coulson - one of whose mates has the gall to come on the lunchtime news feeling sorry for him.

Can you believe it?????

Yessir, we can!!!!!

[ahinton]

An apparently unrepentant Harris gets 5 years 9 months in the slammer; still waiting on Coulson - one of whose mates has the gall to come on the lunchtime news feeling sorry for him.

Can you believe it?????

Yessir, we can!!!!!

18 months for Coulson, apparently - see http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/

I don't yet know whether either intends to appeal against his convictions and/or his sentence.

[french frank]

It had already been said, I think, that Coulson would get 'up to two years', designed to prepare for the sentence being less - I assume - than the public might expect, given the prominent publicity.

[aka Calum Da Jazbo]

the maximum tariff is two years apparently ... i would have thought some nice conspiracy charges and verballing could have been arranged just like the old days ... and sent them both down for a five year stretch ...

who will write the tell all book?

[Serial_Apologist]

the maximum tariff is two years apparently ...

I din't think there were precedents...

[french frank]

I din't think there were precedents...

I don't suppose there have to be precedents. Presumably whatever he was charged with carried a maximum sentence.

[amateur51]

Coulson is of course awaiting a retrial on the aspects of his original trial upon which the jury could not agree.

A complaint has been lodged that the length of Harris' sentence is too lenient and Attorney-General Dominic Grieve is taking this forwards.

[amateur51]

In today's Guardian Chris Huhne rails against the inappropriateness Coulson's jail term, demonstrating once again that he just doesn't get it.

http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2014/jul/06/andy-coulson-jail-term-prison-obsession

Huhne calls Coulson's sentence schadenfreude. Believe me if it really were schadenfreude Coulson should be dressed in a convict's uniform with arrows racing up & down it and forced to parade before Fleet Street's finest photographers daily until after a month had passed no-one came.

I bet Chris still thinks he was 'done' for a minor traffic offence :slapsselfonforeheadthingo:

[french frank]

I read that yesterday. But he does make some valid points, whatever the headline message that you take away from it:

That it costs £40,000 a year to keep him in prison and

"We lock up 149 of every 100,000 people, compared with 103 in France and 78 in Germany. If we imprisoned as much as Sweden, we would have 35,000 prisoners not 85,684. This would save nearly £2bn a year, enough to fund better community sentences and probation."

But that is a separate discussion from the one about phone-hacking.