Stay With Me, Rhys by Melanie Jones

Author:Melanie Jones
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Ebury Publishing

CHAPTER SEVEN

The Trial

ALTHOUGH THE NEXT eleven weeks were horrendous, the first day of the trial, on 9 October 2008, started on a farcical note.

As the case was so much in the spotlight, it had been arranged for us to go in the back entrance, away from the public gaze, for the duration of the trial. But on the first day, because the media always want their pound of flesh, they wanted us to go through the front so they could take all the necessary pictures and videos for the papers and news outlets. My initial reaction was, ‘Why on earth do I have to do that?’ It was the last thing I wanted to do when I had so many other things on my mind and I knew we were facing a difficult few weeks. But the FLOs advised us that we should do this on the first day, and then we wouldn’t have to do it again for the rest of the trial, so eventually we agreed.

The arrangement was that the photographers, journalists and cameramen would gather outside the courtroom and wait for us, and the FLO, John, who was travelling in the car with us, would call ahead when we were ten minutes away. That way, they could be given enough notice so that they could get ready to film us going in and take the photos. Unfortunately, John forgot to call.

As we pulled up and got out of the car, word spread through the crowd of media waiting outside the courtroom and all hell broke loose. They all turned round, saying, ‘Oh they’re here!’ and there was a mass scramble as they all tried to take photos and videos. Realising his mistake, John looked a bit sheepish and said, ‘Oh no, I should have phoned them.’

For a split second, there was some light relief and Ste and I had something to laugh about. But it was only amusing for a minute because, when we got inside the building and walked upstairs to the room they had provided for us, John got a call from the court’s media coordinator. The press had complained that they hadn’t got the right shots and asked if Ste and I could come back down and walk through again.

‘Can you just do this for me?’ our poor FLO begged but I wasn’t impressed.

‘No, I won’t,’ I said.

‘Please,’ he pleaded. ‘Can you just walk through again?’

‘No, I’m not doing it,’ I said. With all the stress I was under that day that was the last thing I wanted to do. After that, we didn’t come in the front way again so, for the rest of the trial, the press had to make do with the few pictures they’d got in that scramble.

Liverpool Crown Court is housed in a modern brown building and there are several courts on each floor. Our hearing was set to take place on the third floor, in one of the biggest courts in the building, and the area outside the chamber is very open and very public.

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