News In Focus
20 April 2009
No review of Wallace treason case
Scottish patriot William Wallace's conviction of treason against Edward I of England will not be investigated as a miscarriage of justice, the Scottish Criminal Cases Review Commission has announced.
The review body, set up in 1999 to hear complaints into alleged wrongful convictions, has decided that it has no jurisdiction to look into proceedings before an English court.
William Wallace was tried and executed in London in 1305 following his capture in Scotland, on charges related to his refusal to recognise the English Crown at a time when King Edward claimed sovereignty over Scotland. The Review Commission established for England & Wales has already declined to look into the case, leaving campaigners with no further avenue.
Gerry Sinclair, chief executive of the SCCRC, also said his Commission considered it not in the public interest to reopen the case.