Wednesday, February 27, 2013 6:39:49 PM
Murdochgate: Rupert & James Facing Possible JAIL Time UPDATED x1
From an article in Independent Australia, titled, Rupert and James Murdoch to appear in court in UK phone hacking trials:
AUSTRALIAN-BORN newspaper magnate Keith Rupert Murdoch and his son James may be summonsed as key witnesses in the forthcoming criminal trials of the employees and senior executives of his British newspapers, according to legal sources in London.
The central role that Rupert and James Murdoch played in the hacking scandal will need to be subjected to much more intense scrutiny under formal oath in the Old Bailey. In these circumstances, both would be liable to imprisonment if they lied.
Both had previously claimed, publicly at first, that the scandal was the work of one rogue reporter and later, when more information emerged that there had in fact been an army of rogue reporters, they denied all knowledge.
http://www.independentaustralia.net/2013/business/media-2/rupert-and-james-murdoch-to-appear-in-court-in-uk-phone-hacking-trials/
Here's the thing -- Many legal experts believe that they have already lied in their testimony to Parliament! They could be in serious trouble.
It could also explain why Rupert has been quickly selling off his precious voting shares of News Corp. He's cashed in about $70 million over the past week or two alone. (More on that here: http://www.dailykos.com/story/2013/02/22/1189162/-Murdochgate-Rupert-Selling-Off-Shares-of-News-Corp-at-Frantic-Pace
The criminal trials at which appearances by Rupert and James are likely, such as those of Rebekah Brooks and Andy Coulson, are due to begin in September.
This is an exciting development, in my opinion, because the media has finally mentioned possible prison time for Rupert and James Murdoch.
Update 1:
Some amazing UK legal info from Dave The Sandman in the comments:
Perjury UK Style -- Just so my US chums are aware:
Perjury in a UK court is a lot easier to prosecute than it is in a US court. It is also taken a lot more seriously as a criminal offense.
For example, during the famous Kitzmiller vs Dover School District et al case in the US two members of the Dover School board clearly lied during their testimonies. However, Judge Jones shied away from actually prosecuting either of them as he maintained that it would be a difficult process to bring to success. He has also commented that even if prosecuted the offenses would have merely attracted fines.
The judicial laws around perjury in UK criminal cases are much stricter and easier to bring to completion than in the US, and perjury in a criminal case will usually result in jail time as well as a fine.
That said, Indenial James and the Dirty Digger can both afford fancy lawyers and barristers to see that they are fully briefed before hand and can weasel out of dropping themselves in the doodoo.
Bear in mind that the UK is not as afraid of the Dirty Duo as the US is. A judge in the US, fearing for campaign funding and re-election or his or her future career, would balk at taking on the Murdoch clan. In the UK the bench is not elected and is independent of government and political parties.
We shall see......
http://www.dailykos.com/story/2013/02/27/1190146/-Murdochgate-Rupert-James-Facing-Possible-JAIL-Time
From an article in Independent Australia, titled, Rupert and James Murdoch to appear in court in UK phone hacking trials:
AUSTRALIAN-BORN newspaper magnate Keith Rupert Murdoch and his son James may be summonsed as key witnesses in the forthcoming criminal trials of the employees and senior executives of his British newspapers, according to legal sources in London.
The central role that Rupert and James Murdoch played in the hacking scandal will need to be subjected to much more intense scrutiny under formal oath in the Old Bailey. In these circumstances, both would be liable to imprisonment if they lied.
Both had previously claimed, publicly at first, that the scandal was the work of one rogue reporter and later, when more information emerged that there had in fact been an army of rogue reporters, they denied all knowledge.
http://www.independentaustralia.net/2013/business/media-2/rupert-and-james-murdoch-to-appear-in-court-in-uk-phone-hacking-trials/
Here's the thing -- Many legal experts believe that they have already lied in their testimony to Parliament! They could be in serious trouble.
It could also explain why Rupert has been quickly selling off his precious voting shares of News Corp. He's cashed in about $70 million over the past week or two alone. (More on that here: http://www.dailykos.com/story/2013/02/22/1189162/-Murdochgate-Rupert-Selling-Off-Shares-of-News-Corp-at-Frantic-Pace
The criminal trials at which appearances by Rupert and James are likely, such as those of Rebekah Brooks and Andy Coulson, are due to begin in September.
This is an exciting development, in my opinion, because the media has finally mentioned possible prison time for Rupert and James Murdoch.
Update 1:
Some amazing UK legal info from Dave The Sandman in the comments:
Perjury UK Style -- Just so my US chums are aware:
Perjury in a UK court is a lot easier to prosecute than it is in a US court. It is also taken a lot more seriously as a criminal offense.
For example, during the famous Kitzmiller vs Dover School District et al case in the US two members of the Dover School board clearly lied during their testimonies. However, Judge Jones shied away from actually prosecuting either of them as he maintained that it would be a difficult process to bring to success. He has also commented that even if prosecuted the offenses would have merely attracted fines.
The judicial laws around perjury in UK criminal cases are much stricter and easier to bring to completion than in the US, and perjury in a criminal case will usually result in jail time as well as a fine.
That said, Indenial James and the Dirty Digger can both afford fancy lawyers and barristers to see that they are fully briefed before hand and can weasel out of dropping themselves in the doodoo.
Bear in mind that the UK is not as afraid of the Dirty Duo as the US is. A judge in the US, fearing for campaign funding and re-election or his or her future career, would balk at taking on the Murdoch clan. In the UK the bench is not elected and is independent of government and political parties.
We shall see......
http://www.dailykos.com/story/2013/02/27/1190146/-Murdochgate-Rupert-James-Facing-Possible-JAIL-Time
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