Miscarriage of justice victim Sam Hallam takes compensation battle to Supreme Court

Reunited: Sam Hallam was released from prison in 2012 after his mother, Wendy Cohen, fought to overturn his conviction

A Hoxton man who spent seven years behind bars for a crime he did not commit is taking his claim for compensation to the Supreme Court, after it was thrown out by the Court of Appeal.

Sam Hallam, 28, this month lost the latest round of his legal battle for compensation following the miscarriage of justice that saw him wrongly convicted of murder.

He was jailed in 2005 for life with a minimum term of 12 years in connection with the murder of Essayas Kassahun.

In May 2012 appeal judges ruled that fresh evidence made his conviction unsafe and he was released from prison. However, Mr Hallam’s application for compensation was rejected by the Ministry of Justice last June.

He then took his case to the Court of Appeal, but on 11 April this year three judges dismissed his challenge.

Sam Hallam’s mother, Wendy Cohen, told the Hackney Citizen she was “disappointed” but “not surprised” at the Court of Appeal’s decision.

“I don’t even know what to say any more. It’s a disgrace. I was very upset. I’ve had to take a bit of a step back now – it’s taken 12 years from my life. It’s horrible when I look back at it all.

“He was exonerated. The case was cleared. But they changed the rules and we’re still fighting.”

New Ministry of Justice rules for miscarriages of justice were introduced under the Coalition government. Now applicants can only win compensation if they can prove “a new or newly discovered fact shows beyond reasonable doubt” that they did not commit the offences for which they were jailed.

Mr Hallam’s legal challenge was seen as a test case for the new regime.

“I just hope his team will win in the Supreme Court,” said Ms Cohen. “But it shouldn’t be campaigns that work – the system should work.

“We got him home because we campaigned and fought hard. But it should never have happened in the first place. There were so many findings in the Thames Valley report that could have prevented him being locked away.”

Thames Valley Police examined Hallam’s conviction and the handling of his case in a 15-month investigation.

“I hope soon we can put it all behind us. We want closure.”

Ms Cohen said the family had been happier since Sam’s son was born two years ago. “He’s filled a big empty gap in our lives,” she said.

Mr Hallam’s solicitors, Birnberg Peirce, are now waiting to hear whether the Supreme Court will grant them leave to appeal.