Judge’s conduct ‘did not prejudice case’ against Crockwell murderer

The man who murdered Shaki Crockwell has had his appeal against conviction thrown out by the Court of Appeal.

Derek Spalding was jailed for life last year after being found guilty of shooting Mr Crockwell in the back of the head.

The jury heard the two men met in prison and that Spalding enlisted Mr Crockwell to sell drugs for him after he was released.

Prosecutors claimed Spalding murdered Mr Crockwell because he felt Mr Crockwell was ‘playing him’ and not paying him his dues.

And during the trial two witnesses told jurors that Spalding had later confessed to them that he had murdered Mr Crockwell on the Railway Trail in Warwick on August 24, 2007.

Spalding, now 37, was found guilty of premeditated murder and using a firearm last February and jailed for a minimum of 38 years by Puisne Judge Carlisle Greaves.

His lawyer, Marc Daniels, then lodged an appeal against his conviction.

The appeal was heard on June 24 and 25 before three Court of Appeal judges and their judgement was made public earlier this week.

Mr. Daniels had claimed that the judge’s conduct in the trial was unbalanced, unfair and biased and made it almost impossible for the defence to put its case. 

Impatient

But the Court of Appeal rejected the assertion.

The judgement stated: “We have come to the conclusion that whilst the learned trial judge was somewhat robust and somewhat impatient, it cannot be said that this prevented the defence from putting forward its case.

“His conduct did not in any way prejudice the case as put forward by the defence.”

The Court of Appeal judges added: “We have found no merit in the grounds of appeal argued.  There was an abundance of evidence on which the jury properly directed could find the appellant guilty of the charges. 

“For the above reasons the appeal against convictions were dismissed and the convictions affirmed.”

Although Spalding’s appeal against conviction has now been dealt with the killer could still see the minimum term of 38 years he was given at sentencing reduced following a ruling by the Privy Council earlier this year.

Reduced

In October the court reduced the minimum term that notorious killers Ze Selassie and Jermaine Pearman would have to serve behind bars before they could be considered for release by the parole board.

The highest court in the UK ruled that the maximum term a defendant could serve before eligibility for release on licence is 25 years for premeditated murder and 15 years for murder.

The ruling has opened the way for Spalding and other killers to have the minimum term they serve before they can be considered for release reduced. n