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Newspaper wins right to print defendant's address

An order banning the identification of a man charged with attempted murder has been overturned by the Northamptonshire Evening Telegraph.

When the defendant first appeared at Wellingborough Magistrates’ Court the Evening Telegraph was able to name him, but his address was subject to a Section 11 order under the Contempt of Court Act.

The order was made on the grounds that it was in the public interest to prevent possible damage to the defendant’s property and assault on members of the public, and because of the additional cost of policing if his address was published.

After being alerted by Evening Telegraph reporter Joni Ager, editor David Penman (pictured) challenged the order through the magistrates’ courts office on the grounds that many people facing criminal charges would like to keep their identity a secret, in particular their home address.

He argued that the principle of open justice should not be sacrificed in this case.

Magistrates rejected the editor’s argument and, as the case was shortly to appear before a judge at Northampton Crown Court, he shifted his attention to the higher court, detailing his objections in a letter to Judge Christopher Harris QC.

The editor was baffled when court reporter Derrick Holden told him that the court had been cleared, that the hearing was apparently held in camera and that a further order was made banning both the defendant’s address and name from publication.

The court also initially declined to make a copy of the order available to the Evening Telegraph.

However, at a hearing at Oxford Crown Court on Monday, where arguments from lawyers for the newspaper and the defence were heard, Judge Harris withdrew the order which had prevented publication of the defendant’s address.

He also he said he had not instructed the journalist at Northampton Crown Court to be excluded from the hearing, but that the public gallery be cleared, and it had not been his intention to widen the scope of the Section 11 order made by magistrates.

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