No Christmas Dinner for Ronald Easterbrook
On Christmas day, Saturday the 25 of December 1999
Ronald Easterbrook will have gone with out food for 44 days
Ron Easterbrook is serving four life sentences and is being held
at HMP Highdown. He has been on hunger strike since Thursday 11
November 1999 in protest at the refusal of the Criminal Case Review
Commission CCRC to refer his case back to the Court of Appeal. Ron is
68 years old and in very poor health and there is a strong
possibility that he will die.
In a message from prison Ron said:
"I am desperate for justice I am determined to die if I cannot get
my case back to court." "now all legal avenues are closed to me my
body is the only tool I have to highlight this miscarriage of
justice."
Ron is only taking liquids, ribena and lucazade, though very weak
he is in good spirits.
He is calm and resolute about the hunger strike and is confident that
he will get a posthumous pardon when his case finally gets to Europe
Ron Easterbrook is what may be described as a career criminal. He
has a string of convictions for robberies and assaults. He is from
South London and belongs to an older era in many ways. He is now 69
years old and is held as a category A prisoner at Highdown prison in
Sutton, Surrey.
In 1987, he agreed, against his own better judgement, to
participate in an armed robbery of a supermarket in South London. It
transpired that the whole thing was set up by a police informer and
the robbery was filed live by Thames TV. The police fired on Ron and
his co-defendant, his co-defendant was killed immediately. Ron was
injured and also injured a police officer.
He was not represented at trial as his trial barrister said
that his defence was political as it implied that the police had a
shoot to kill policy. As a result, Ron represented himself, was found
guilty and received a life sentence. The conviction and sentence were
upheld by the Court of Appeal who refused leave to appeal.
Whilst in prison, Ron protested by refusing to speak to prison
staff for 7 years (giving him legendary status amongst other
prisoners). Eventually, after a prolonged food refusal, he was told
that this tariff was whole life.
After legal argument, the Home Secretary re-set the tariff at 12
years on advice from the Lord Chief Justice. However, Ron will not
accept parole (nor is it likely to be granted) and he wishes to
challenge the legality of his sentence.
The life sentence in his case is unique. No other armed robber
has received a life sentence for similar offences and the sentencing
court and Court of Appeal appear to have ignored all legal guidelines
& precedent when it was set. Ron applied to the CCRC to have the
sentence referred back to the Court of Appeal.
His argument is based on the lack of legal representation, the
failure of the sentencing court to issue appropriate warnings before
imposing the sentence and the departure from all known sentencing
authority. It is essentially a due process argument.
The CCRC provisionally rejected the application in August and
invited further representations. In November, they issued a second
provisional rejection letter - a very unusual step - and again
invited further representations.
At this stage, Ron went on hunger strike. He is exceptionally
strong willed and there is no doubt that he will see this through.
His health is already suffering badly.
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Criminal Case Review Commission CCRJ turned down Ron's appeal on
Friday 3 December his solicitors went to the High Court on Friday
Afternoon and lodged an appeal but it was thrown out.
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A Prison Service Spokesman said:
"An inmate at Highdown prison has been refusing food since 11
November 1999. He is still taking liquids and his condition is not
currently a cause for concern."
"The prisoner is located in the healthcare where he is receiving
regular checks from medical staff."
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What you can do to help Ron:
Send a letter of protest to
Minister of State for the Home Office, Paul Boateng
asking the Minister to refer the case back to Criminal Case Review
Commission CCRJ, model letter below.
The fax number for Paul Boateng: 0171-273-4090 from outside the UK,
00-44-171-273-4090
or you can write to him at the:
Home Office
50 Queen Annes Gate
London SW1H 9AT
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Model letter
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Att: Paul Boateng
Minister of State for the Home Office
Dear Mr. Boateng
Re: Ron Easterbrook "On Hunger Strike"
Ron Easterbrook is serving a life sentence and is being held at
HMP Highdown. He has been on hunger strike since Thursday 11
November 1999 in protest at the refusal of the CCRC to refer his
case back to the Court of Appeal. Ron is 69 years old and in very
poor health and there is a strong possibility that he will die.
"We are concerned at the treatment of Ron Easterbrook by the CCRC,
who have rejected his appeal to them. Ron is an elderly man in very
poor health who has now been on hunger strike for over 40 days. We
cannot believe that you would allow Ron to die rather than to afford
him justice. He has only ever sought to be represented before the
Courts by a lawyer and yet even this most basic right has been denied
to him.
Please ask the Criminal Case Review Commission CCRC to look at his case again.
Yours Sincerely
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Letters of support for Ron can be sent to:
Ron Easterbrook
HMP Highdown
Sutton Lane
Sutton
Surrey SM2 5PD
Or E-mailed to:
RonEasterbrook@ncadc.demon.co.uk
If you have time send copies of any faxs to:
0870-055-4570
In Solidarity
John O for "Miscarriages of Justice UK"
E-mail: JusticeUK@appleonlline.net
Web Sire: http://www.appleonline.net/justiceuk/jus.html