John Jenkins

John Jenkins was convicted of the murder of Jeannie Smith, who was stabbed during a series of assaults, after leaving her home believing her son was involved in a disturbance in the street. Her son identified John Jenkins as the person who had stabbed his mother (despite initially identifying others, and despite not picking him in an initial line up which he was included in). The appeal court identified the case as one where the jury’s reliability could not be supported because other evidence could not overcome severe question marks over the eyewitness evidence. No reasonable jury could have concluded beyond reasonable doubt that Jenkins was guilty. The conviction was quashed on that basis.

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