Judge jails ‘arrogant’ liar Briscoe for 16 months (original) (raw)

Constance Briscoe shared with Vicky Pryce and Chris Huhne an “arrogance by educated individuals who considered respect for the law was for others” a judge said today as he jailed her for 16 months.

Briscoe, who was found guilty of three counts of perverting the course of justice, was told that her conduct had struck at the heart of Britain’s “much cherished criminal justice system”.

Mr Justice Baker said the conviction of the part-time judge, barrister and author of a renowned misery memoir, Ugly, was a “personal tragedy” for a woman who had been “something of a role model for others”. Briscoe, 56, was taken to Holloway women’s prison and is expected to be sent to an open prison within days.

The charges arose from the penalty points-swapping trial of Huhne, the former energy secretary, and Pryce, his ex-wife, both of whom were jailed for eight months last year.

Briscoe had been lined up as an “unimpeachable” witness until it transpired that she had continually lied to police. She then tried to cover up her lies, leading to further charges of perverting the course of justice.

Her downfall has resulted in a series of inquiries: the Crown Prosecution Service has said that it will consider requests for reviews of cases in which Briscoe acted as a prosecuting barrister; the police are investigating whether documents she deployed in her libel battle with her mother over Ugly were forged; and the judicial authorities are preparing to prevent her standing as a judge again.

Her mother, Carmen Briscoe Mitchell, is trying to overturn the libel trial verdict against her, which resulted in Briscoe and the publisher of Ugly, Hodder & Stoughton, seeking six-figure costs.

Mr Justice Baker told the Old Bailey today that Briscoe, a mother of two, was the third individual to be convicted of criminal offences arising out of a saga whose origin was in 2003 when both Huhne and Pryce lied about who had been driving a speeding car.

Briscoe hid her true motives for her involvement and then compounded the position in 2011 by “deliberately fabricating evidence when you thought you would be exposed”.

He said the conviction was a “personal tragedy” for a woman who had been “something of a role model for others” adding: “Although blessed with intelligence, you did not have every advantage in life. However, you worked hard at school and were the first person in your family to go to university.” He said the defendant went on to be given the privilege of being a part-time judge while “raising your two much-loved children”.

Mr Justice Baker said, however, that she had been motivated, like Pryce, to “ensure the downfall of Chris Huhne”, adding: “I’m sure that you realise only too well that this conduct strikes at the heart of our much-cherished criminal justice system.”

Yesterday an Old Bailey jury had found her guilty, at a retrial, of all counts after just five hours of deliberations. Her previous trial earlier this year resulted in a hung jury.

Mr Justice Baker said that he had taken account of her previous good character and the “devastating effect” of the conviction on her career. He sentenced Briscoe to four, five and seven months for the three counts, totalling 16 months in jail.

As she was taken from the dock, Briscoe said: “I’m grateful, my lord.”