List of failed and overturned convictions involving the West Midlands Serious Crime Squad
Between 1974 and 1989, the West Midlands Police force operated the West Midlands Serious Crime Squad. It was disbanded after allegations of endemic misconduct, leading to a series of unsafe convictions. These included allegations that officers had falsified confessions in witness statements, denied suspects access to solicitors and used torture such as "plastic bagging" to partially suffocate suspects in order to extract confessions. They were alleged to have abused payments to informers. A series of around 40 prosecutions failed in the late 1980s as defendants showed that evidence had or may have been tampered with. West Yorkshire Police led an investigation which led to a small number of internal disciplinary proceedings, but did not recommend any prosecutions for lack of evidence. However, over 60 convictions secured from their investigations have now been quashed, including those of the Birmingham Six and Bridgewater Four. The failed prosecutions and overturned convictions are listed here in two separate tables.
List of failed prosecutions
Table derived fromList of convictions quashed at appeal
Below are the names of those whose trials were re-examined after their investigations by the West Midlands Serious Crime Squad and subsequent convictions were thought to be potentially unsound. Also included is the later case of Lloyd George Fraser, involving former officers of the squad, where the conviction was quashed because of their involvement. Three others had their convictions quashed in 1985, before the allegations of systemic misconduct were widely accepted.| Name | Status | Case date | Appeal date | Notes |
| Paul Alberici | Conviction quashed | 1986 | 1999 | Convicted with Clancy |
| Gary M Binham | Conviction quashed | Before 1994 | ||
| Michael T Bromell | Conviction quashed | Before 1994 | ||
| Donald Brown | Conviction quashed | 1979 | 1999 | Same case as Ronald and John Brown, and Treadaway |
| Ronald Brown | Conviction quashed | 1979 | 1999 | Same case as John and Donald Brown, Dunne and Treadaway |
| John Lewis Brown | Conviction quashed | 1979 | 2005 | Same case as Ronald and Donald Brown, Dunne and Treadaway |
| Hugh Callaghan | Conviction quashed | 1974 | 1991 | Birmingham Six |
| Trevor Campbell | Conviction quashed | 1984 | 1999 | |
| Geoffrey Cheetham | Conviction quashed | Before 1994 | ||
| Thomas Clancy | Conviction quashed | 1986 | 1996 | Three years before his co-defendant Alberici |
| Valentine P Cooke | Conviction quashed | Before 1994 | ||
| John Joseph Cummiskey | Conviction quashed | 1984 | 2003 | Convicted with Roy Meads |
| Michael Dunne | Conviction quashed | 1979 | 2011 | Same case as John, Ronald and Donald Brown, and Treadaway |
| John Edwards | Conviction quashed | 1991 | ||
| Martin Foran | Conviction quashed | 1984 | 2013 | |
| Martin Foran | Conviction quashed | 1978 | 2014 | |
| Adolphus Francis | Conviction quashed | Before 1994 | ||
| Lloyd George Fraser | Conviction quashed | 1991 | 2003 | Former officers of the squad, after it had been disbanded |
| Raymond Fryer | Conviction quashed | Before 1994 | ||
| Gerard Gall | Conviction quashed | Before 1994 | ||
| Ronald T Gall | Conviction quashed | Before 1994 | ||
| Patrick Gaughan | Conviction quashed | 1979 | 1999 | Same case as Ronald and Donald Brown, Dunne and Treadaway |
| Tarlochan Singh Gill + 3 ors | Conviction quashed | 1984 | 1994 | |
| Christopher Hagans | Conviction quashed | 2011 | ||
| Delroy Hare | Conviction quashed | Before 1994 | ||
| Robert Haughton | Conviction quashed | Before 1994 | ||
| Paddy Hill | Conviction quashed | 1974 | 1991 | Birmingham Six |
| George A Hinds | Conviction quashed | Before 1994 | ||
| Leslie B Horobin | Conviction quashed | Before 1994 | ||
| Gerard Hunter | Conviction quashed | 1974 | 1991 | Birmingham Six |
| Patrick Irvine | Conviction quashed | 1980 | 2011 | |
| Elvis Jeffers | Conviction quashed | Before 1994 | ||
| Hassan Khan | Conviction quashed | Before 1991 | See also | |
| George G Lewis | Conviction quashed | 1987 | Before 1994 | |
| Paul R Lindo | Conviction quashed | Before 1994 | ||
| Daniel Lynch | Conviction quashed | Before 1994 | ||
| Trevor McCalla | Conviction quashed | 1995 | Served 18 months | |
| John Lyon Mccloy | Conviction quashed | 1980 | 2011 | |
| Richard McIlkenny | Conviction quashed | 1974 | 1991 | Birmingham Six |
| Thomas Dennis Mcmillan | Conviction quashed | 2012 | ||
| Roy Meads | Conviction quashed | 1984 | 1996 | Convicted with Cummiskey |
| David Murphy | Conviction quashed | 2006 | With Patrick O'Toole | |
| Anne Marie Murray | Conviction quashed | 2003 | ||
| Patrick O'Toole | Conviction quashed | 2006 | With David Murphy | |
| Keith Parchment | Conviction quashed | 1991 | ||
| Billy Power | Conviction quashed | 1974 | 1991 | Birmingham Six |
| Patrick Smith | Conviction quashed | Before 1994 | ||
| Tanochan | Conviction quashed | Before 1994 | ||
| Derek Treadaway | Conviction quashed | 1979 | 1996 | Same case as Dunne and John, Ronald and Donald Brown |
| Trevor McCalla | Conviction quashed | Before 1994 | ||
| Keith Twitchell | Conviction quashed | 1980 | 2002 | |
| John Walker | Conviction quashed | 1974 | 1991 | Birmingham Six |
| Anthony Wellington | Conviction quashed | 1991 | ||
| Constantine Wellington | Conviction quashed | Before 1994 | ||
| Kevin Wilcox | Conviction quashed | Before 1994 | ||
| Lawrence Wilcox | Conviction quashed | 2010 | ||
| Seymour Williams | Conviction quashed | Before 1994 | ||
| John Wilson | Conviction quashed | 2011 |
List derived from
List of overturned convictions from the Regional Crime Squad
| Name | Status | Case date | Appeal date | Notes |
| Vincent Hickey | Conviction quashed | 1978 | 1997 | Bridgewater Four |
| Michael Hickey | Conviction quashed | 1978 | 1997 | Bridgewater Four |
| Pat Molloy | Conviction quashed | 1978 | 1997 | Bridgewater Four |
| James Robinson | Conviction quashed | 1978 | 1997 | Bridgewater Four |
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