In 2002 the Court of Appeal, in London, proclaimed that James Hanratty’s guilt, in the infamous A6 Murder case, had been proven by the DNA evidence from the now disbanded Forensic Science Service; thereby ?nally, after 40 years of controversy, hoping to have put an end to the doubts in the case. However, this didn’t remove the inconvenient fact that tireless campaigners such as Paul Foot and Bob Wo?nden, had fully documented the copious evidence pointing to Hanratty’s innocence, which had persuaded the Criminal Cases Review Commission to bring the case back before this court. This book is the first to review this court’s worrying deliberations and subsequent events and will no doubt prove unpopular with our political and judicial authorities. As you will see the controversy remains far from over. There is no escaping that if the FSS evidence is correct the case for his innocence must be wrong, but which is the more likely? How had the court undertaken its duty to balance these con?icting narratives, when arriving at its damning verdict? Had it decided all the evidence of innocence was mistaken, or lies? Or had it just ignored it? Equally, how had it assessed the veracity of the FSS scienti?c evidence put before it? The answers, as this work details, are woeful and should be widely known, as they impact, not just on this tragic case, but on the way our courts are still treating forensic DNA evidence. Be warned, this is not a light read, but our authorities and anyone who practices law in this country should consider it carefully, as it has stark implications for our criminal justice system and those who ?nd themselves being judged by it.

Author argues that james Hanratty was wrongfully convicted and hanged for the murder of Michael Gregsten.

An examination of the trial and execution of James Hanratty for the A6 murder case, which discusses numerous appeals to clear his name, reveals how even at the time of his conviction doubts were voiced over his guilt, and highlights evidence which has come to light since his death.

In August 1961, 22-year-old Valerie Storie and 36-year-old Michael Gregsten were the victims of James Hanratty in the notorious 'A6 Murder'. After a five-hour ordeal, ending in a layby on the A6 in Bedfordshire, Michael was shot dead and Valerie was raped, shot and left for dead. She survived, but was paralysed and remained in a wheelchair until her death in 2016. In 1962, Hanratty became one of the last men in the UK to be hanged, unleashing forty years of fierce and passionate debate, as many were convinced of his innocence, until 2002 when DNA evidence proved that he was indeed guilty. Valerie, however, was never in any doubt, and picked out Hanratty in an identity parade. She always intended to write a book, and over the years had secretly drafted its contents and written hundreds of notes. Yet for over thirty-five years she gave no interviews, despite persistent media pressure to do so. The Long Silence is, in essence, Valerie's posthumous autobiography, explaining for the first time every explicit detail of the 'cat and mouse' drive, as Michael and Valerie tried on over twenty occasions to deter and thwart the apparently indecisive Hanratty.