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Up to 75,000 rail passengers in England and Wales could have their fare evasion convictions quashed after a judge ruled on Friday that the prosecutions were invalid.
Campaigners have called for an inquiry into what they described as a massive miscarriage of justice after Chief Magistrate Paul Goldspring told a hearing that prosecutions under a controversial “fast-track” judicial procedure should never have been brought.
Lawyers representing two rail companies, Greater Anglia and Northern Trains, have acknowledged that the proceedings should not have been brought and apologised to the court for the “mistakes”.
The total number of people affected has not yet been established, although Goldspring said during the trial at Westminster Magistrates’ Court that it could be as high as 75,000.
Several rail operators have prosecuted alleged fraudsters using the “single judicial procedure” (SJP) procedure, introduced in 2015. This procedure allows some minor offences to be dealt with privately by magistrates working on paper, rather than through public hearings.
But the alleged offences fell under the Railways Regulation Act 1889, and the 2015 legislation did not allow railway companies to use the fast-track SJP procedure to bring proceedings under that act.
Campaigner Christian Waters welcomed the judge’s comments and said there had been a miscarriage of justice affecting an “absolutely enormous” number of people.
Waters has called for an investigation into how the justice system allowed the prosecution to continue. He was prosecuted for fraud in Leeds after he said he was unable to buy a ticket because of a faulty machine, although he later reached an out-of-court settlement.
Alistair Richardson, a lawyer representing Greater Anglia, said in a written submission that the company “acknowledges that a series of significant errors occurred” and wished to “apologise unreservedly to the court and to those involved”.
“Any amount paid, in the form of fines or costs, should be refunded in the same manner as it would be for any other conviction that is subsequently appealed or overturned,” he noted.
Brian O’Neill KC, representing Northern Trains, said the company “wishes to apologise to the court and all interested parties for erring in the exercise of its prosecutorial powers”.
Goldspring, which is adjudicating six standard fare evasion cases, said it would make a formal decision next month on the legal means by which the convictions could be overturned.
