Alexander Pepperell

Alexander Pepperell was convicted of several counts of indecent assault and causing a child to commit an act of gross indecency follwing allegations made against him many years after the alleged offences. The daughter of a close friend of Pepperell’s wife alleged that when she and Pepperell’s daughter were in bed, Pepperell would go into their bedroom and assault her on the pretence of telling bedtime stories. A daughter of Pepperell’s friend alleged Pepperell had assaulted her. On appeal, evidence was introduced from a new witness that she had heard one of the complainants trying to persuade the other to accuse Pepperell. The witness got the impression she wanted the other girl to back her up. The Court of Appeal found that the convictions were unsafe on the basis that this new evidence, if given at trial, might reasonably have affected the jury’s decision to convict Pepperell. No retrial was ordered due to the age and infirmity of Pepperell.

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