George Davis (robber)
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George Davis (born 1941) is an
armed robber Robbery is the crime of taking or attempting to take anything of value by force, threat of force, or by use of fear. According to common law, robbery is defined as taking the property of another, with the intent to permanently deprive the per ...
, born in Bletchley, England and active in England. He became known through a successful campaign by friends and supporters to free him from prison after his wrongful conviction in March 1975, for an armed payroll robbery at the
London Electricity Board The London Electricity Board was the public sector utility company responsible for the supply and distribution of electricity to domestic, commercial and industrial consumers in London prior to 1990. It also sold and made available for hire and ...
(LEB) offices in Ilford, Greater London, on 4 April 1974. The conviction was based solely on unreliable use of identification evidence, in the absence of other evidence connecting him with the crime. Following his release, Davis was jailed for two cases of armed robbery.


Evidence

A number of blood samples (matching different blood groups) were recovered and formed part of the prosecution case. Of four accused, only Davis was convicted. At a number of specific locations, Davis was identified but the blood obtained from the location did not match his; neither did the blood match any of his co-accused. A further complication turned on the fact that Davis might never have been committed for trial from the lower courts had blood test results been disclosed at the committal stage. Although it subsequently became clear that evidence had by then become available to police, it was suppressed and this abuse of due process became one of the core allegations relied upon by those campaigning for the release of Davis.
"The blood samples taken from ... Davis ... at
Walthamstow Walthamstow ( or ) is a large town in east London, England, within the ceremonial county of Greater London and the ancient county of Essex. Situated northeast of Charing Cross, the town borders Chingford to the north, Snaresbrook and Sout ...
on 18 May 1974 were passed on to the Yard's Senior Scientific Officer, Peter Martin, on 21 May and he reported his negative findings to the police officer in charge of the case on 20 June. At as late as November 1974 on a third bail application, this time before a judge in chambers, and after committals had been completed (28 October) the police were saying that they still awaited the blood results from forensic."


Campaign for release


Public activism

On 19 August 1975, while Davis was serving a 20-year prison sentence for the Ilford LEB robbery, his supporters dug holes in the pitch and poured oil over one end of the wicket at the
Headingley Cricket Ground Headingley Cricket Ground is a cricket ground in the Headingley Stadium complex in Headingley, Leeds, England. It adjoins the Headingley Rugby Stadium through a shared main stand, although the main entrance to the cricket ground is at the op ...
, preventing further play in the
Test match Test match in some sports refers to a sporting contest between national representative teams and may refer to: * Test cricket * Test match (indoor cricket) * Test match (rugby union) * Test match (rugby league) * Test match (association football) ...
between
England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe ...
and
Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands. With an area of , Australia is the largest country by ...
. This direct action protest by relatives and friends of George Davis was accompanied by Davis Campaign
graffiti Graffiti (plural; singular ''graffiti'' or ''graffito'', the latter rarely used except in archeology) is art that is written, painted or drawn on a wall or other surface, usually without permission and within public view. Graffiti ranges from s ...
proclaiming "FREE GEORGE DAVIS ... JUSTICE FOR GEORGE DAVIS ... GEORGE DAVIS IS INNOCENT ... SORRY IT HAD TO EDONE". Three men and one woman were tried for this incident, and one, Peter Chappell, was eventually jailed for 18 months. The Davis campaigners who were remanded to prison to await trial for the Headingley
sabotage Sabotage is a deliberate action aimed at weakening a polity, effort, or organization through subversion, obstruction, disruption, or destruction. One who engages in sabotage is a ''saboteur''. Saboteurs typically try to conceal their identitie ...
continued their campaigning in support of one another within the prison system. One, Geraldine Hughes, refused to accept bail until it had also been granted to all of her co-accused. The campaign was also characterised by the graffiti “GEORGE DAVIS IS INNOCENT OK” or some variant thereof, in plain white paint, appearing on dozens of walls and bridges in London and on motorways.


Celebrity support

Roger Daltrey Roger Harry Daltrey (born 1 March 1944) is an English singer, musician and actor. He is a co-founder and the lead singer of the rock band The Who. Daltrey's hit songs with The Who include " My Generation", " Pinball Wizard", " Won't Get Fooled ...
of
The Who The Who are an English rock band formed in London in 1964. Their classic lineup consisted of lead singer Roger Daltrey, guitarist and singer Pete Townshend, bass guitarist and singer John Entwistle, and drummer Keith Moon. They are considered ...
went on stage in 1975 wearing a T-shirt emblazoned with "George Davis Is Innocent". "George Davis Is Innocent" was a song on
Sham 69 Sham 69 are an English punk rock band that formed in Hersham in Surrey in 1975. They were one of the most successful punk bands in the United Kingdom, achieving five top 20 singles, including " If the Kids Are United" and " Hurry Up Harry". T ...
's 1978 debut album ''
Tell Us the Truth ''Tell Us the Truth'' is the debut album by English punk rock band Sham 69, released in 1978. The first side of the album was recorded live in concert, while the other was recorded in the studio. ''Tell Us the Truth'' includes one of Sham 69's ...
'', and the song "The Cockney Kids Are Innocent" ends with a namecheck.
Patrik Fitzgerald Patrik Fitzgerald (born Patrick Joseph Fitzgerald, 19 March 1956, Stratford, East London)Strong, Martin C. (2003) ''The Great Indie Discography'', Canongate, , p. 68 is an English singer-songwriter and an originator of folk punk. The son of wo ...
also showed support with "George" on the 1979 EP ''The Paranoid Ward''. Davis received a
namecheck Name-dropping (or name-checking or a shout-out) is the practice of naming or alluding to important people and institutions within a conversation,. story, song, online identity, or other communication. The term often connotes an attempt to impress ...
in the
Duran Duran Duran Duran () are an English rock band formed in Birmingham in 1978 by singer and bassist Stephen Duffy, keyboardist Nick Rhodes and guitarist/bassist John Taylor. With the addition of drummer Roger Taylor the following year the band we ...
song "Friends of Mine" on the album ''
Duran Duran Duran Duran () are an English rock band formed in Birmingham in 1978 by singer and bassist Stephen Duffy, keyboardist Nick Rhodes and guitarist/bassist John Taylor. With the addition of drummer Roger Taylor the following year the band we ...
'' (1981): the chorus begins "Georgie Davis is coming out". The back cover of the
Tom Robinson Band Tom Robinson Band (TRB) are a British rock band, established in 1976 by singer, songwriter and bassist Tom Robinson. The band's debut single "2-4-6-8 Motorway" was a top five hit on the UK Singles Chart in 1977, and their third single, "Up A ...
's LP ''
Power in the Darkness ''Power in the Darkness'' is the debut studio album by English punk band Tom Robinson Band, released in early 1978. The UK LP had ten tracks. It included inside the album cover a stencil similar to the cover art, but with the album title replaced ...
'' (1978) contains a cropped photo of the band seated on a street in front of a wall; the 2004 CD issue of that album shows the uncropped photo, showing the wall contained the graffito "GEORGE DAVIS IS GUILTY".


Media sympathy

Before Chappell's 1976 trial and conviction there was media criticism of the decision by the courts to refuse bail to the Headingley defendants (for example ''The Daily Telegraph'' editorial "WHEN TO GIVE BAIL", 28 August 1975) and eventually bail was granted to all of them. Bail conditions were stringent and denied the four Headingley accused the right to discuss Davis's wrongful conviction in public.


Related campaigns

Importantly, the original campaign to free Davis overlapped with, variously influenced, and was in turn influenced by other criminal justice campaigns in London, particularly the Free George Ince Campaign. Ince, another London victim of identification evidence, was also eventually freed. Although the "
EAST END The East End of London, often referred to within the London area simply as the East End, is the historic core of wider East London, east of the Roman and medieval walls of the City of London and north of the River Thames. It does not have uni ...
SOLIDARITY CAMPAIGN...TO STOP EAST END FIT UPS" (October 1975, UPAL/INCE Campaign political poster) had pre-dated the Davis Campaign, it went on to parallel it. Both campaigns had support from London political activists who had a history of organising radical defence campaigns around the criminal justice system. In particular, among these core activists (who had supported and helped organise "defence campaigns" in connection with
The Angry Brigade The Angry Brigade was a far-left British terrorist group responsible for a series of bomb attacks in England between 1970 and 1972. Using small bombs, they targeted banks, embassies, a BBC Outside Broadcast vehicle, and the homes of Conservati ...
arrests and criminal prosecutions) were a number who went on to establish ''Up Against The Law'' (UPAL), a London-based "political collective". This Collective publicised the Ince case and went on to produce the most detailed publicly available investigation of the 1974 Davis Case armed robbery. In September 1975, Peter Chappell while awaiting trial in prison for the August 1975 Headingley sabotage, wrote to UPAL:
"When this campaign started 18 months ago I was completely on my own and, if the truth were known, I was probably being labelled as a well meaning nut case, even in East London with no friends at all that I could seriously talk to about Davis’s case… I value UPAL’S help a great deal … I thought that I must find other people and that if I make sacrifices then sooner or later others would join the fight…. George Davis is not on his own any more thanks to people like you. There are more things twixt life and death than a pound note."
Some of UPAL's core activists, involved with both the Davis and Ince Campaigns, had also had late '60s early '70s activist connections with the ''Release Collective''.


Release

In May 1976, despite a then-recent
Court of Appeal A court of appeals, also called a court of appeal, appellate court, appeal court, court of second instance or second instance court, is any court of law that is empowered to hear an appeal of a trial court or other lower tribunal. In much ...
decision (11 December 1975) not to overturn Davis's criminal conviction, the
Home Secretary The secretary of state for the Home Department, otherwise known as the home secretary, is a senior minister of the Crown in the Government of the United Kingdom. The home secretary leads the Home Office, and is responsible for all nationa ...
,
Roy Jenkins Roy Harris Jenkins, Baron Jenkins of Hillhead, (11 November 1920 – 5 January 2003) was a British politician who served as President of the European Commission from 1977 to 1981. At various times a Member of Parliament (MP) for the Lab ...
, on partial completion of a police review of the case, agreed to recommend the release of Davis without further referral back to the Court of Appeal. Jenkins undertook this highly exceptional exercise of the Royal
Prerogative of Mercy In the English and British tradition, the royal prerogative of mercy is one of the historic royal prerogatives of the British monarch, by which they can grant pardons (informally known as a royal pardon) to convicted persons. The royal prero ...
because of doubts over the evidence presented by the police which helped convict Davis. Davis's release was announced on 11 May 1976. At the time of Davis's release, former Home Office Minister Alex Lyon wrote at some length to explain the genuine difficulties he had faced in seeking to resolve the constitutional difficulties he saw as preventing Davis's release from a conviction that he had regarded as unsafe. According to a
BBC Radio 4 BBC Radio 4 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC that replaced the BBC Home Service in 1967. It broadcasts a wide variety of spoken-word programmes, including news, drama, comedy, science and history from the BBC's ...
documentary, although Davis was released because his conviction was deemed to be "unsafe" by the Home Secretary he extraordinarily held that Davis was not held to be "innocent". The period of official embargo on the release to the
Public Record Office The Public Record Office (abbreviated as PRO, pronounced as three letters and referred to as ''the'' PRO), Chancery Lane in the City of London, was the guardian of the national archives of the United Kingdom from 1838 until 2003, when it was ...
of official papers, related to the 1976 decision to free Davis, has now been extended by 20 years until 2026. However, according to a report in ''
The Independent ''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publish ...
'' written by the newspaper's Law Editor, Robert Verkaik, Davis and one of his original trial barristers, David Whitehouse, later a QC, intended to make representations to the Criminal Cases Review Commission in the hope that they would return to court citing new evidence and establish Davis's innocence and seek compensation for his period of imprisonment. The appeal was heard "explicitly on the basis that (Davis) has no expectation of compensation or other recognition. His reputation is, clearly, that of an armed robber whatever the result". On 24 May 2011, Davis's conviction for the 1974 raid on the London Electricity Board was quashed by three judges at the
Court of Appeal A court of appeals, also called a court of appeal, appellate court, appeal court, court of second instance or second instance court, is any court of law that is empowered to hear an appeal of a trial court or other lower tribunal. In much ...
. One of the judges, Lord Justice Hughes, said that the conviction, based on dubious identification evidence, was unsafe but that the court was not able positively to exonerate Davis.


Further robberies

In 1978, two years after his release from prison, Davis was jailed again, having pleaded guilty to involvement in an armed bank raid on 23 September 1977 at the
Bank of Cyprus The Bank of Cyprus (BoC) ( el, Τράπεζα Κύπρου, tr, Kıbrıs Bankası) is a Cypriot financial services company established in 1899 with its headquarters in Strovolos. Current operations The Bank of Cyprus currently operates 108 bra ...
, Seven Sisters Road, London. Davis was caught at the wheel of the getaway van with weapons beside him; in the raid shots were fired and a
security guard A security guard (also known as a security inspector, security officer, or protective agent) is a person employed by a government or private party to protect the employing party's assets (property, people, equipment, money, etc.) from a variety ...
clubbed to the ground. He was released early in 1984 but jailed again in 1987 for attempting to steal mailbags. Davis pleaded guilty.


Personal life

Some time after his release from prison in 1976, Davis separated from his first wife Rose. Some years later he married Jennifer, the daughter of a North London police
Chief Inspector Chief inspector (Ch Insp) is a rank used in police forces which follow the British model. In countries outside Britain, it is sometimes referred to as chief inspector of police (CIP). Usage by country Australia The rank of chief inspector is us ...
. His first wife, Rose Dean-Davis (d. 31 January 2009), wrote a book, ''The Wars of Rosie: Hard Knocks, Endurance and the 'George Davis Is Innocent' Campaign'' in 2008.Pennant Books. .


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Davis, George 1941 births Living people 20th-century English criminals British people convicted of robbery Date of birth missing (living people) Overturned convictions in the United Kingdom Place of birth missing (living people)