Football is close to the heart of many people in the UK with a great many having great adoration for the talent and skill of those that play ‘the beautiful game’. Unfortunately, a dark cloud has gathered over the world of football recently, following revelations from former players that they had been the victims of sexual abuse by some of their coachers/ trainers when they were young. The number of reports of historic sexual abuse in British football has snowballed in recent weeks, with a report highlighting that the police are investigating as many as 83 potential suspects (reported here)
As a criminal barrister, I am routinely instructed to defend people that are alleged to have committed sexual offences, both historic and more recently. In this blog post, I highlight some of the complexities around the law of historic sexual offences.
The world of British football has had significant problems of late, particularly in terms of the behaviour of some of its players and how this interacts with the criminal law. Chedwyn Evans, the former Wales footballer, recently had to undergo an exhausting ordeal in the criminal courts with a full trial, appeal and retrial for the alleged rape of a young woman he met on a night out. While Mr Evans was ultimately found not guilty, following evidence that his accuser had a history of particular sexual behaviour which was deemed synonymous with her interaction with Mr Evans such as not to constitute her being raped.
The revelations of historic sexual abuse however concern a range of individuals, many of whom remain unnamed for legal reasons, while the Football Association and the police conduct what will be an extensive investigation into allegations of sexual abuse by players. Of those that have been named in the media, Mr George Ormond is the most infamous. Mr Ormond, former football coach was imprisoned in 2002 following conviction for having carried our historic sexual abuse against young football players in his charge. There is a great deal of information in the media concerning Mr Ormond, but his activities included touching some young players inappropriately, and on at least one occasion, masturbating in front of one of his charges. Another individual that have been claimed to have conducted sexual abuse against young football players include Mr Barry Bennell, a convicted paedophile and former football coach at Crewe Alexandra. Mr Bennell has been identified by various former players as having subjected them to sexual abuse while they were still young (reported here).
The law concerning historic sexual offences is incredibly complex. The way that it will apply depends on a variety of things, principally when it is alleged that an offence was carried out. This is where historic sexual offences can become very difficult to deal with. It is a hallmark of the British justice system that individuals facing allegations of criminal behaviour understand precisely what they are charged with. However, this can be difficult given that with the movement of time, law can change and this has particular consequences for claims of historic sexual abuse.
In the event that someone is charged with having committed historic sexual abuse, they will need to be investigated and prosecuted under that law that applied when they are alleged to have committed the offence. If one looks at the various allegations of historic sexual abuse that have come to the fore in recent weeks, these all concern crimes that are alleged to have taken place between the 1970’s and 1980’s. In the UK the law governing sexual offences has changed a great deal since then, with much of the modern law now contained within the Sexual Offences Act 2003. However, as mentioned earlier, individuals facing allegations of historic sexual abuse must be investigated and tried under the applicable law at the time of their alleged crime. As a result, the most relevant piece of legislation for dealing with these suspected infractions is the Sexual Offences Act 1956.
It is very difficult to comment on the specific aspects of the 1956 Act that will be activated in any prosecution, lacking any formal legal proceedings having been raised in respect of some of the revelations about historic sexual abuse. That being said, there are however certain behaviours that are criminalised under the 1956 Act which are likely to be important in any future prosecutions. Arguably the most relevant in the context of historic sexual abuse in football is the crime of ‘Indecent Assault’.
Under the terms of the 1956 Act it is impossible for a boy to consent to an act that would be a common assault under the age of 16. Most of the allegations from footballers concerned their teenage years, many of whom who may well have been under the age of 16 at the time they claim to have suffered sexual abuse. It will be important for prosecutors, if attempting to utilise this section to consider:
The alleged behaviour of some of the reported former football coaches with those that they trained, together with their respective maturity compared with that of their young charges undoubtedly would attract the crime of ‘indecent assault’. Mr Ormond was deemed to be in clear violation of the 1956 Act, and any evidence that other individuals pursued a similar pattern would likely suffer a similar sanction to him – several years’ imprisonment – under the 1956 Act.
Historic sexual offences can be incredibly vexing for all concerned. While it is vital that behaviour that is ultimately found to be illegal is appropriately punished, it is vital that care is taken. The passage of time can have a significant impact on people’s memories and could indeed result in otherwise innocent people being charged for crimes that they did not commit. Equally, even where allegations and formal charges are raised, these need to be met by a robust defence by lawyers that are fully equipped with knowledge of the substantive law and experience of testing the prosecution’s case.
I’m Mark Kelly, a leading barrister working in the areas of regulatory and criminal law in the UK. I have many year of experience of defending clients alleged to have committed sexual offences, and have a special interest in this area of UK law. I appreciate very well that being charged with having committed a historic sexual offence can be incredibly upsetting, not least with the amount of stress and anxiety that can result from having to prepare for a formal criminal trial. As a defence barrister, I use my years of courtroom experience and knowledge of the law to provide a robust defence for my clients. I work in close partnership with to ensure that you are fully appraised of the situation, and will leave no stone unturned in building a defence that places your interests at its heart.
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