Phone Hacking Trial: Brooks denies any involvement in hacking Milly Dowler’s phone – Martin Hickman
It is hard to accept this evidence; an editor should know what their reporters are doing and an illegal act like phone hacking would require editorial approval, in my opinion. It is hard to accept that Mrs Brooks did not know about it as the information in the resulting story would raise questions about how it was sourced, and it would be the editor’s job to ensure those questions could be answered by reference to practices that are legal.
That being said, Mrs Brooks has already claimed that she ran a gauntlet of prejudice against her when she became an editor – much of it claiming that she was not competent to do the job. If this was true, then it’s possible she didn’t know about the hacking that was taking place on her watch, and didn’t understand that it was illegal (although the fact that it was perverting the course of justice – and this has been a crime for many, many years, should have given her cause for thought). In fact, there is information here to give any interested party cause for thought.
In law, isn’t ignorance of the facts not accepted by the prosecution as a defence (Ignorantia juris non excusat). If I was brought before a court and said, “I was unaware it was illegal to be working and to claim benefits at the same time, it wouldn’t save me from a conviction.
She also claimed she didn’t know hacking was illegal. I would have thought anyone with an IQ in double digits would have been suspect of the word “HACKING” and checked with their huge team of lawyers….good to see her squirm a bit, not so smug now as she was when she appeared before a parliamentary committee (of sycophants), she enjoyed doing playing to the audience, doing her Mandy Rice Davis act.
That was until she arrested by appointment.. I had to laugh with contempt at the cops giving her opportunity to decide when she would come in, had it been one of plebes, they would have had their door smashed in, in the early hours, no if’s, no but’s!