"The man, known under the pseudonym Mercury, faced a trial in 2018 after he pleaded not guilty. But it then collapsed after a judge ruled that a 1971 police interview where he confessed to the murder was not admissible. Mercury made the alleged confession, which was the cornerstone of the crown's case, when he was 17 years old and still a child under NSW law, and less than 18 months after Grimmer disappeared."
"On Thursday, Jeremy Buckingham, a member of NSW Legalise Cannabis party revealed the identity of Mercury while protected under parliamentary privilege. Sign up: AU Breaking News email Guardian Australia is choosing not to name the man. The man could not legally be publicly identified during the 2018 trial because he was aged 15 at the time of the alleged offending. Ahead of Buckingham revealing the name, president of the Legislative Council of NSW, Ben Franklin, interrupted him."
Cheryl Grimmer vanished from outside a shower block at Fairy Meadow beach on 12 January 1970 while with her mother and three older brothers. A man known under the pseudonym Mercury was charged over her alleged abduction and murder and faced a 2018 trial after pleading not guilty. That trial collapsed when a judge ruled a 1971 police interview in which he confessed was inadmissible because he was a minor when he allegedly confessed. An NSW MP later used parliamentary privilege to publicly reveal the man's identity despite legal suppression and warnings about abusing privilege.
#cheryl-grimmer-disappearance #parliamentary-privilege #cold-case-legal-proceedings #juvenile-confession-admissibility
Read at www.theguardian.com
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