Judge warns jury of prejudice in Rebekah Brooks and Andy Coulson phone-hacking case
Mr Justice Sanders says ‘British justice is on trial’
The jury in the Rebekah Brooks phone hacking trial have been sworn in, with the judge warning them that it was not just the former News International chief executive and the seven other defendants but British justice on trial.
Mr Justice Saunders told the jury of nine women and three men at the Old Bailey central criminal court in London on Tuesday that the case had attracted “perhaps an unprecedented amount of publicity” across all media, and that some content, particularly on the internet, was inaccurate, offensive, demeaning and ill-informed.
Saunders said: “In a way, it is not only the defendants who are on trial but British justice is on trial.”
He added that some of the defendants are well-known public figures and had been written about on social media. He drew particular attention to the latest issue of Private Eye. “It bears a picture of Rebekah Brooks on the cover. It’s meant to be satire. You ignore it. It has no serious input and it’s not relevant to your consideration,” he said.
In a way, it is not only the defendants who are on trial but British justice is on trial
“It’s one of those things which you will have to ignore - a joke, that in the circumstances of today is a joke in especially bad taste.”
Saunders said some of the comment on social media was abusive and should be ignored.