In March 2017, along with other women’s rights groups, Southall Black Sisters intervened in the John Worboys case at the Supreme Court.
We challenged the police who argued that they have no actionable legal duty to investigate serious crimes of violence against women. Yet the victims of the serial rapist were seriously let down by a catastrophic litany of failures in the police’s investigation into their reports of rape. But for these failings, the rapist would have been caught earlier and countless women would have been protected. The outcome will be vital to our ongoing campaign to hold the police and other parts of the criminal justice system accountable in law for serious failures in the investigation.
On Wednesday 21 February, the Supreme Court will be handing down its judgment.
SBS will be outside the court with our banner ‘No Justice Without Accountability.’
Southall Black Sisters also supports the campaign by Centre for Women’s Justice (CWJ) to raise funds on behalf of two of the women who were raped and sexually assaulted by John Worboys. Judicial review proceedings have been brought by the solicitor acting for the women against the Parole Board and the Secretary of State. The women seek to challenge the Parole Board’s decision to grant early release to John Worboys who was convicted of their rape as well as those of other women. SBS supports their campaign to ensure that there is greater transparency and accountability at all levels of the criminal justice system for all women who have been subjected to rape and sexual violence.
The full judicial review hearing will take place on 13th March. Please support the crowdfunding campaign set up by CWJ to meet the legal costs involved in bringing these important proceedings.
BBC News: Timeline: Sex crimes of taxi driver
The Guardian: John Worboys’s victims were told his sentence was equivalent to life
The Guardian: How the establishment failed victims of ‘black-cab rapist’ John Worboys
Crowd Justice: Why people are backing the legal challenge by victims of John Worboys: in their own words
The Guardian: Court allows challenge to John Worboys’ release
BBC Radio 4: ‘I know I was raped’
