CORONATION STREET ACTOR CLEARED - ANOTHER REASON FOR ANONYMITY

During the autumn the story broke that Coronation Street actor Michael le Vell (he plays Kevin Webster) was accused of child sex allegations and arrested and bailed. The story was front page news everywhere and his name was dragged through the mud.

A few days ago it was announced that the CPS had dropped the charges because of 'insufficient evidence'. The CPS were very weaselly in the words they chose in stating the charges were dropped.

Due to the nature of the accusation and his public profile and the publicity it therefore received, he will forever sadly have this associated with him.

This is why the government's backing down on granting anonymity to rape defendants unless found guilty was such a betrayal. Not just because Michael's case is another example of how someone's name can be dragged through the mud based on a false accusation (if he is not being prosecuted then it must be false - surely) but also because the coalition government put it in their manifesto.

Another sad chapter in the anti-male society we live in and to the anti-male modern-day feminists, he is just collateral damage.

Posted by Skimmington 

Comments

[John Kimble]

Some good points but I do take issue with this: "if he is not being prosecuted then it must be false - surely".

The odds are overwhelmingly that it is false, but another possibility is that there's nowhere near enough evidence to have the slightest chance of conviction. Also, the police can be quite incompetent sometimes, and although this would harm innocent men in most cases, it can also derail prosecutions.

I've never bought the stupid and harmful feminist line that the police should believe all people who claim to be victims of sexual assault, but we shouldn't disbelieve them either.

[Skimmington]

Fair point John and agree with your line certainly on the issue about the whether the failure of the prosecution was false or enough evidence.

It could be lack of evidence of course, but it would be better if the CPS did not leave the question hanging in the air.