Jacqueline Davies
Jacqueline Davies | |
|---|---|
| Born | 21 May 1948 |
| Nationality | British |
| Occupation | Circuit judge |
| Spouse | Paul Clark (?ndash;2008; his death) |
Jacqueline Davies (21 May 1948 – 18 April 2019)[1][2] is a Circuit Judge, working in the North Eastern region of the UK. She was appointed on 29 June 1993.[3]
Notable Decisions
[edit]Twitter Joke Trial
[edit]On 11 November 2010 Judge Jacqueline Davies, sitting with two magistrates, refused an appeal against the verdict of the "Twitter Joke Trial", from Paul Chambers who had posted a message on Twitter saying:[4]
Crap! Robin Hood airport is closed. You've got a week and a bit to get your shit together otherwise I'm blowing the airport sky high!!
Chambers was appealing his conviction for "sending a public electronic message that was grossly offensive or of an indecent, obscene or menacing character contrary to the Communications Act 2003"[5] at Doncaster magistrates court[6]
When Judge Davies heard the appeal in Doncaster Crown Court she judged that the tweet was "obviously menacing"[7] and that Chambers must have known that it might be taken seriously.[8] She upheld the £1000 fine, and ordered that he pay an extra £2000 in legal costs.[9]
Many members of Twitter registered their disapproval of the judgement, and Stephen Fry offered to pay the defendant's legal bill.[9]
Judge Davies' decision was reversed on appeal in the High Court by decision dated 27 July 2012. The 13 page judgment by Lord Chief Justice Lord Judge, stated:[10][11]
We have concluded that, on an objective assessment, the decision of the Crown Court that this 'tweet' constituted or included a message of a menacing character was not open to it. On this basis, the appeal against conviction must be allowed.
Personal life
[edit]Judge Davies was married to Judge Paul Clark who died on 7 October 2008 [12]
In 2009 Judge Davies took part in a charity walk across the Sinai Desert in memory of her husband and to raise money for Prostate UK and Wellbeing of Women.[13]
References
[edit]- ^ "Birthdays". The Guardian. 21 May 2014. p. 43.
- ^ RYCHLIKOVA, Megi (27 April 2019). "Five-court live tv link-up to honour trail-blazing judge". York Press.
- ^ "List of members of the judiciary - Circuit Judges". Judiciary.gov.uk. 5 March 2010. Archived from the original on 29 April 2014. Retrieved 12 November 2010.
- ^ Chambers, Paul (11 May 2010). "My tweet was silly, but the police reaction was absurd". Guardian. London. Retrieved 17 September 2010.
- ^ "Communications Act 2003". Legislation.gov.uk. Retrieved 18 December 2016.
- ^ Wainwright, Martin (10 May 2010). "Wrong kind of tweet leaves air traveller £1,000 out of pocket". Guardian. London. Retrieved 17 September 2010.
- ^ "Twitter joke martyr loses appeal". Theregister.co.uk. 11 November 2010. Retrieved 12 November 2010.
- ^ Wainwright, Martin (11 November 2010). "Twitter joke trial: Paul Chambers loses appeal against conviction". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 12 November 2010.
- ^ a b Siddique, Haroon (12 November 2010). "#IAmSpartacus campaign explodes on Twitter in support of airport joker". The Guardian. London.
- ^ "Approved Judgment" (PDF). Judiciary.gov.uk. 27 July 2012. Archived from the original (PDF) on 9 December 2012. Retrieved 18 December 2016.
- ^ "Chambers v Director of Public Prosecutions [2012] EWHC 2157 (QB) (27 July 2012)". BAILII. 27 July 2012. Retrieved 27 July 2012.
- ^ "Paul Clark (From Oxford Mail)". Oxfordmail.co.uk. 15 October 2008. Retrieved 18 December 2016.
- ^ "The Barrister Blog: Judge completes trek across Sinai Desert". Timkevan.blogspot.com. 24 March 2009. Retrieved 18 December 2016.
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