Leicester Peer Will Not Be Prosecuted Over Child Sex Abuse Claims

16 April 2015, 13:01 | Updated: 30 March 2016, 13:50

A Labour peer who was a Leicester MP for years won't stand trial on sex abuse allegations.

Lord Janner is 86 and the Crown Prosecution Service says his dementia is too severe.

Leicestershire Police have called the decision not to prosecute 'the wrong one'

The Police and Crime Commissioner for Leicestershire called it 'wholly perverse'.

25 people came forward to claim Lord Janner, now 86, abused them during the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s, the CPS said.

He is alleged to have used his influence as a Labour MP for Leicester to prey on vulnerable young boys at local children's homes.

One of the alleged victims asked police to put out a statement to Capital on his behalf:

For legal reasons he can't be named and said: “This animal is still being protected because [of his status] and isn't able to stand trial. They say that it's not in the public interest, but isn't it in the public interest to know what his victims have gone through at the hands of this man?

“If he was an everyday person with a normal life and job, justice would [have] been served, but as it stands we victims are just being pushed to the ground again and walked over.

“Let someone feel the pain and suffering that I've endured and still going to endure for the rest of my life. It's not a case of being found guilty or going to prison - it's about being believed after so long being told that we were lying. Justice needs to be served.”

But despite admitting there is enough evidence to prosecute the peer for 22 sex offences against nine people, the CPS said it is not going to pursue the case because of the "severity of his dementia''.

Leicestershire Police May Take Legal Action

Assistant Chief Constable Roger Bannister of Leicestershire Police, who has overseen the investigation named Operation Enamel, said he believed the decision was ``the wrong one''.

He said: "I am extremely worried about the impact the decision not to prosecute him will have on those people, and more widely I am worried about the message this decision sends out to others, both past and present, who have suffered and are suffering sexual abuse.

"We are exploring what possible legal avenues there may be to challenge this decision and victims themselves have a right to review under a CPS procedure.''

Leicestershire's Police and Crime Commissioner Speaks Out Against The Decision

Sir Clive Loader said: “This decision is not just wrong – it is wholly perverse and is contrary to any notion of natural justice.  I cannot believe that any right-minded person will understand or support it.

“For decades this man is alleged to have carried out premeditated, systematic sex crimes against young boys and one girl who were in the care of the local authority.  He got away with it for all those years because his victims were frightened of him and of his position of authority."