xxdr_zombiexx

Police sting breached my human rights says drug dealer
Edinburgh News | Mon 23 Feb 2004
MICHAEL HOWIE

POLICE face being sued by an Edinburgh drug dealer after judges ruled the force had breached his human rights during a sting operation.

Law lords have declared that police denied David McGibbon’s right to privacy by secretly recording conversations about drugs between him and undercover officers in their car.

McGibbon, 32, was jailed for 12 months in 2000 for supplying cannabis after being caught during a major police crackdown on drugs.

Video and audio tape recordings from the sting, carried out under Operation Foil, provided the bulk of the Crown’s evidence during a 26-day trial at Edinburgh Sheriff Court.

Co-accused Peter Corstorphine, 43, was found guilty of being concerned in supplying an officer with cannabis and amphetamine.

Lawyers for McGibbon are bidding to have the guilty verdict overturned.

They have claimed the recordings breached the engineer’s right to privacy under Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights. The judges have now agreed the tapes did breach McGibbon’s human rights - paving the way for McGibbon to take civil action against the police.

They stopped short, however, of overturning the guilty verdict against him for drug dealing.

The law applying to undercover police work was changed in 2000, giving detectives clearer rights to stage such stings. However, it is thought McGibbon’s case could have repercussions for other cases involving undercover police work before 2000.

Politicians today voiced anger at the move. Scottish Tory leader David McLetchie said: "I’m sure the public will have little sympathy for a convicted drug dealer seeking to overturn a conviction on these grounds."

Legal experts today said the ruling appeared to pave the way for a damages claim against police chiefs.

Margaret Smillie, of leading law firm Bannatyne Kirkwood France, said: "It does appear that the police have breached the accused’s right to privacy, which may allow him to sue the police."

McGibbon’s lawyers said they would not consider suing the Lothian and Borders force until they knew the outcome of various appeals they are still pursuing on his behalf.

They are claiming the force were also guilty of entrapment. And they say the length of time he has been on bail awaiting appeal is another reason his conviction should be quashed.

Asked if the firm would be pursuing a civil action, Gillian Law, of Beaumont & Co, said: "Not at this juncture. We are still waiting for the outcome of the other grounds of appeal. If they fall, we may take the rare step of going to the Privy Council."

During the trial, the men’s defence counsel claimed the two were provoked into breaking the law.

Undercover detectives referred to only as Sean, Johnny, Jav and Rob, were working as part of Operation Foil.

Sean met Corstorphine, then of Clearburn Crescent, Edinburgh, who voluntarily offered to arrange buying cannabis and amphetamine.

But defence advocate Neil Breadmore claimed: "The undercover officer called Sean became impatient and tried to move things along. He put pressure on the accused to obtain the drugs."

Stewart Ronnie, defending McGibbon, whose address at the trial was given as Sleigh Gardens, Edinburgh, said: "The accused was poor and vulnerable. Sean said he would make the drug arrangement worth his while financially. He was offering him an inducement."

Corstorphine was admonished because he had been in custody 141 days awaiting the outcome of the trial. He is also seeking to overturn his conviction.

Article 8 stipulates that "everyone has the right to respect for his private and family life, his home and his correspondence". But it adds that "a public authority" can interfere with the right "for the prevention of disorder or crime".

In an interim ruling on the case, Lord Johnston and Lord Wheatley said prosecutors admitted the covert recordings breached McGibbon’s human rights.

But they turned the appeal down, saying it was not the fault of the Lord Advocate, who is in charge of public prosecutions in Scotland.

A police spokeswoman said: "We are aware of the case but as it’s ongoing we are unable to comment."

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Torture Good, Healthcare Bad, Marijuana Evil.

There's no money for your issue so long as we're squandering $50 billion a year on the DrugWar. Ben Masel

Higher Self

How do undercover cops show they are doing a good job? It's the number of 'confirmed kills' they get. Alot of decent folks get caught up in the madness by over zealous undercover cops who badger people into committing crimes, and then turn around and bust'em. It happens all the time.

People caught up in this mess are viewed not a people, but another skull and bones on the fuseloge. Another step towards their the furthering of their careers. Never mind the consequences to the unwitting victim... 20 years laters after your long forgotton, and they are retired, you'll still be dragging your cross of conviction. It's like one big vidio-game to them, your not real, and when the games over, there's no consequences for them.

There are decent folks in law enforcement, but they are the minority, in that they have compassion for others. If this were not true, LEAP would not exist. For those ex-enforcement folks with a conscience, they've created LEAP. LEAP is therepy for folks who know that they're past 'transgressions' upon decent common folk whom they 'vitimized'. It helps them sleep at night.

Lessons learned: never help a stranger, especially a friend of a friend, aquire anything. Period. It matters not what your 'good' intentions are. If you must 'use', be a consumer only.

Karma is like a VISA card, it goes everywhere you go!

Wouldn't it be nice if we could all just get abong.