British Prosecutors To Consider Criminal Charges In Royal Hoax Call

[News_Editor]

British prosecutors to consider criminal charges in royal hoax call < br />

2012-12-23 10:32:52 GMT+7 (ICT)

LONDON, ENGLAND (BNO NEWS) -- British prosecutors are considering whether to file criminal charges against two Australian DJs who placed a hoax call to a London hospital where Prince William's pregnant wife Kate was being treated, apparently leading to the suicide of a nurse who transferred the call.

The Metropolitan Police Service (MPS), which is better known as Scotland Yard, said its officers have liaised with the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) to determine whether any criminal offenses were committed in relation to the hoax call made to King Edward VII Hospital in central London on December 4.

"On Wednesday 19 December, officers submitted a file to the Crown Prosecution Service for them to consider whether any potential offences may have been committed by making the hoax call," a Scotland Yard spokesperson said on Saturday, declining to provide other details.

Mel Greig and Michael Christian, presenters at 2Day FM in Sydney, placed a hoax call to King Edward VII Hospital during the early hours of December 4. They posed as Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Charles in the hopes of being transferred to Prince William's pregnant wife Kate, but they were instead transferred to a nurse who provided confidential details about her condition.

The nurse who took the call and transferred it, 46-year-old Jacintha Saldanha, was found dead from an apparent suicide in staff accommodation near the hospital on December 7. It is believed the hoax call had confused and agitated Saldanha, who reportedly left three suicide notes in which she blames Greig and Christian for her death.

It is unclear which charges are being considered and how they would be pursued against Greig and Christian, as they were both in Australia when they made the call. The presenters made a tearful televised apology several days after Saldanha's suicide, and both have received death threats.

Australia's media watchdog has also opened an investigation into the call.

Catherine, the Duchess of Cambridge, was hospitalized at King Edward VII Hospital on December 4 with Hyperemesis Gravidarum, a rare form of acute morning sickness which requires supplementary hydration and nutrients. She was released from the hospital a few days later, and the royal couple expressed their shock and sadness over Saldanha's death.

The couple's expected child will be destined to be the future monarch after Commonwealth leaders agreed in October 2011 to change current succession laws. While the law has not yet been altered, it will give the daughter of any future monarch equal rights to the throne as a son. This will put the child third in the line of succession, behind Prince Charles and Prince William.

William and Catherine first met at Scotland's St. Andrew's University in 2001 and began dating two years later, in 2003. They became engaged in October 2010 during a private holiday in Kenya and married at London's Westminster Abbey in April 2011. The royal wedding was watched by hundreds of millions of people around the world, including 72 million people on YouTube alone.

-- © BNO News All rights reserved 2012-12-23

[oldsailor35]

Well, it might influence any future thinking with these stupid hoax calls.

[Scott]

Off-topic post and reply removed.

[chooka]

Well, it might influence any future thinking with these stupid hoax calls.

The Indian-born nurse was admitted to Mangalore hospital for a depressive disorder when she visited her family in December 2011, the unnamed relative said.

According to Indian media reports, the 46-year-old mother-of-two had tried to kill herself at the time and made a second attempt nine days later.

http://news.ninemsn.com.au/national/2012/12/23/15/28/radio-hoax-nurse-tried-to-commit-suicide-before

She was intent on killing herself it appears regrdless of whether the D.J's called or not. It may have been a co worker she would blamed for her own death if the D.J's had not called. She already had mental health problems.

[Steely Dan]

Do I sense the slippery slope towards prosecution based on post-hoc legislation? More worrying still I suspect many people don't even care.

[chooka]

No offence has been identified under Australian law.

London police said Christian and Greig could be charged with attempting to obtain medical details by deception. If they were to be charged under British law for this offence, would it justify the time and great expense to proceed through the British Courts and Australian Courts with extradiction requests? Some how I doubt very much if charges will be brought against them. Britain spends millions of dollars in the process that will result possibly in the charges be proven without conviction and they are back on the 1st plane home to Australia. Even if they are found guilty and a conviction in England is recorded they will still walk away without a prison term and still no criminal convictions in Australia.

[Chicog]

No offence has been identified under Australian law.

London police said Christian and Greig could be charged with attempting to obtain medical details by deception. If they were to be charged under British law for this offence, would it justify the time and great expense to proceed through the British Courts and Australian Courts with extradiction requests? Some how I doubt very much if charges will be brought against them. Britain spends millions of dollars in the process that will result possibly in the charges be proven without conviction and they are back on the 1st plane home to Australia. Even if they are found guilty and a conviction in England is recorded they will still walk away without a prison term and still no criminal convictions in Australia.

Or Australia could simply do what the UK did with Gary McKinnon and refuse to extradite them as they committed no crime in Britain that I can see - they were in Australia at the time.

[Mosha]

Broadcasting without consent is against the law in both countries.

[chooka]

Broadcasting without consent is against the law in both countries.

True, but who is responsible for broadcasting the pre recorded material, is it the Station, producers or the D.J's? The radio Station is being investigated in Australia in regards to the airing of the pre recorded segment and not the D.J's. So back to the D.J's and what offence did they personally commit in Australia? Nothing has been identified.

[Chicog]

Broadcasting without consent is against the law in both countries.

True, but who is responsible for broadcasting the pre recorded material, is it the Station, producers or the D.J's? The radio Station is being investigated in Australia in regards to the airing of the pre recorded segment and not the D.J's. So back to the D.J's and what offence did they personally commit in Australia? Nothing has been identified.

More to the point what authority does the British CPS have to lay charges in a foreign country, or is there some Commonwealth quirk that allows them to do it in the Queen's name or something?

[chooka]

Broadcasting without consent is against the law in both countries.

True, but who is responsible for broadcasting the pre recorded material, is it the Station, producers or the D.J's? The radio Station is being investigated in Australia in regards to the airing of the pre recorded segment and not the D.J's. So back to the D.J's and what offence did they personally commit in Australia? Nothing has been identified.

More to the point what authority does the British CPS have to lay charges in a foreign country, or is there some Commonwealth quirk that allows them to do it in the Queen's name or something?

I don't believe they have any authority now, not since 1986 when the Australia Act was passed. Actually the Australia Act and the British Parliarment Act (Identical Acts) were passed simultaneously because it was unclear which had the more authority. This gave Australia full independence from the mother country and U.K laws no longer applied to Australia and the U.K courts not longer had any juristiction in Australia. Also Australians could no longer appeal to British Courts.

Edited December 25, 2012 by chooka

[F430murci]

Well, it might influence any future thinking with these stupid hoax calls.

The Indian-born nurse was admitted to Mangalore hospital for a depressive disorder when she visited her family in December 2011, the unnamed relative said.

According to Indian media reports, the 46-year-old mother-of-two had tried to kill herself at the time and made a second attempt nine days later.

http://news.ninemsn.com.au/national/2012/12/23/15/28/radio-hoax-nurse-tried-to-commit-suicide-before

She was intent on killing herself it appears regrdless of whether the D.J's called or not. It may have been a co worker she would blamed for her own death if the D.J's had not called. She already had mental health problems.

Even absent this information, it was apparent she had problems. No reasonable person offs themself. Need to look at egg shell skull theory of common law. May not matter how many previous treatments she had. I am unsure if this common law theory would be applicable to criminal prosecution in England. May be inconsistent with a knew or should ave known mens rea.

[chooka]

2day FM DJs may escape charges from UK police

The 2day FM radio DJs involved in the royal prank call are thought to have escaped charges from UK police, NSW authorities say.

NSW Deputy Police Commissioner Nick Kaldas said Scotland Yard initially made contact after the London nurse who took the call, Jacintha Saldanha, died but they had not asked to interview Mel Greig or Michael Christian.

http://news.ninemsn.com.au/world/2012/12/28/08/31/2day-fm-djs-may-escape-charges

[Sing_Sling]

This simply ludicrous pandering to the in-breds at the palace and it wouldn't take a genius defense lawyer to get everything thrown out poste-haste.

What worries me more is that a medical professional with severe mental problems is allowed to work in a hospital - perhaps the royals should slap the hospital with their gloved fists

[7by7]

You are obviously anti monarchist; that is your right.

But this is a case where two people phoned a hospital pretending to be members of a patients family in order to obtain confidential medical information about that patient.

That is both legally and morally wrong and it is only right and proper that the possibility of prosecution should be considered.

They also broadcast the call without the consent of the victims. That is definitely against Australian broadcasting regulations and also possibly Australian law. That should be investigated, too, and the appropriate legal action taken.

The subsequent suicide of one of the nurses tricked by these people only strengthens the need for the case to be looked at closely.

The identity of the patient is irrelevant; except that if she had not been famous then the two idiots would not have made the call and Mrs. Saldanha would probably be alive today.

Figures do show that, worldwide, the suicide rate among medical professionals is higher than average; due, it is thought, to the high stress and overwork of their profession. As has been said before, Mrs Saldanha may have been suffering from issues related to her work or life outside, but the timing of her suicide and the notes she left behind make it probable that it was taking this call and passing it on that tipped her over the edge.

[Sing_Sling]

You are obviously anti monarchist; that is your right.

But this is a case where two people phoned a hospital pretending to be members of a patients family in order to obtain confidential medical information about that patient.

That is both legally and morally wrong and it is only right and proper that the possibility of prosecution should be considered.

They also broadcast the call without the consent of the victims. That is definitely against Australian broadcasting regulations and also possibly Australian law. That should be investigated, too, and the appropriate legal action taken.

The subsequent suicide of one of the nurses tricked by these people only strengthens the need for the case to be looked at closely.

The identity of the patient is irrelevant; except that if she had not been famous then the two idiots would not have made the call and Mrs. Saldanha would probably be alive today.

Figures do show that, worldwide, the suicide rate among medical professionals is higher than average; due, it is thought, to the high stress and overwork of their profession. As has been said before, Mrs Saldanha may have been suffering from issues related to her work or life outside, but the timing of her suicide and the notes she left behind make it probable that it was taking this call and passing it on that tipped her over the edge.

Mrs Saldanha MAY have been suffering from issues related to her work or life outside?

Have you read anything about her?

My point stands as to how a woman with her mental history could be working in a hospital, in charge of patients and as for my being anti-monarchy, that is neither here nor there, the plain fact is that had the patient been Mrs Joe Bloggs from Wiltshire no-one would have made a fuss.

The illegality of transmitting the discussions is an issue which should be, quite rightly, taken up by the courts - but that isn't what the bigger issue is - that of the nurse committing suicide is

[7by7]

If the patient had been Mrs. Joe Bloggs of Wiltshire the two DJs would not have made the call, Mrs Saldhana in all probability would still be alive and we would not be having this conversation.

[Hedghog]

The hoax call wasn't the cause of death.

She was mentally unstable.

Glad she wasn't nursing me.

She is the one that should of been the patient.

On the mental ward

[7by7]

Your compassion does you great credit (sarcasm, in case you get the wrong idea).

I suggest that you read the posts in the parallel topic.

[Sing_Sling]

I didn't realise that compassion entered into a discussion about facts - when you see her family, please do extend my condolences.

And what is incorrect about this:

The hoax call wasn't the cause of death.

She was mentally unstable.

Glad she wasn't nursing me.

She is the one that should of been the patient.

On the mental ward

[7by7]

From the reported evidence; all of it.

[GentlemanJim]

At the end of the day this was incredibly poor judgement on behalf of the 2 DJ's, whose lives are now totally trashed as it happens. What they did was idiotic, but I guess they never could have imagined the consequences. What they should have considered at the very least was that there was an extremely high possibility that they could cause some people to lose their jobs or career prospects if they managed to get the call to go reasonably far, and for not caring or considering that they are culpable. What is worse is that everything they do is simply recorded and then passed on to a production team. The production team had the time and space to carefully consider what would occur if the item was broadcast, and they did not, so to me the production team are equally as culpable.

A point to consider is that we (as in general population) are all to blame, because we demand this kind of crap on TV and radio, we give these people the platform to deliver this tripe and normally....we laugh at it and we demand more. Everything from Jackass to 'Boris' is designed to shock and titilate. Prank calls have been a normal part of daily radio for more than a decade. It is easy, write and complain or just turn it off, when there are no viewers programs are axed. the whole thing is a tragedy but my own personal opinion having suffered a family suicide is that the woman, albeit mentally unstable was totally selfish in the extreme and displayed a complete lack of compassion and caring for her family by taking her own life. Her daughter will live a life permenantly scarred by the devastation caused by the train wreckage her mother caused when she took her own life. All sad, all unnecessary, all avoidable and there but for the grace of God go a thousand TV and radio presenters.

[Sing_Sling]

From the reported evidence; all of it.

Is this your way of discussing the issue?

Ok, here's my rebuttal:

From the reported evidence - none of it

[7by7]

You asked a direct question, I gave you a direct answer.

The reported evidence is in the public domain for all to read, and has been quoted many times in this and the parallel thread, should you wish to read it.

Until the inquest reconvenes and delivers a verdict that is all anyone can base their opinion upon. Your opinion is obviously the opposite of mine. I can live with that; can you?

[Sing_Sling]

You asked a direct question, I gave you a direct answer.

Really? Then my response to your 'direct' answer is valid

[chooka]

Aussie DJs won't be charged over hoax call

British prosecutors said they would not bring charges over a hoax call by two Australian radio DJs to the hospital where Prince William's pregnant wife Catherine was being treated

The Crown Prosecution Service said on Friday there was no evidence to support a charge of manslaughter, despite the fact that Indian-born Jacintha Saldanha, 46, apparently committed suicide after answering the call.

http://news.ninemsn.com.au/world/2013/02/02/01/01/aussie-djs-won-t-be-charged-over-hoax-call