What the bloody hell do they think they are playing at with headlines like this????

www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-7150219...en-dies-aged-57.html


HE WAS CLEARED OF THIS YOU MORONS!!!

You are indeed correct it seems Honey

www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2017/11/16/rolf...victions-overturned/

Well, that's quite a development. Yes, absolutely moronic of the DM to rehash the lies and ignore the appeal judgment. I hope Rolf's representatives speak out on this.

"Mother of five Wendy died of a brain aneurysm, which is often triggered by stress"

Absolutely no mention of stress here: NHS: Brain aneurysm causes

"Increased risk: … smoking… high blood pressure… family history… age… sex… pre-existing weakness in blood vessels… severe head injury… cocaine abuse… autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease… body tissue disorders… coarctation of the aorta."

I cannot understand how newspapers are completely ignoring the fact that this conviction was overturned. How can they get away with this?

At best it was a case of mistaken identity but given that she was going through bankruptcy proceedings at the time she made the allegation I rather think that this was a 'you will be believed' case of bandwagon jumping.

She got £22,000 (probably more from media appearances and Criminal Injuries Compensation). Rolf Harris got nine months' jail for something that he hadn't done.

She won't be doing it again, that's for sure.

It seems that the Mirror doesn't think it can get away with it:
www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/rolf-harri...ictim-wendy-16530755 (original)

But The Mail, Birmingham Live, Metro, The Star, and Manchester Evening News are not quite so quick on the uptake (or should that be 'downtake'?).

As ever, one publication is more agile than the competition. The Sun says...

Rolf Harris’ youngest ‘victim’ who said she was groped by paedo entertainer when she was 7 at kids disco dies aged 57 after ‘living nightmare’
'...claimed she was groped...'
'...conviction on the charge involving Wendy was overturned in 2017 as "unsafe".'

It wasn't even just the mail. It was every other newspaper I could find, too.

I am really not a fan of suing, but in this case it would be very much justified.
They know damned well this crime never happened.
Firstly because they all reported him being cleared, and secondly, because only a fool would think someone of Harris's standing at the time could perform at a crappy children's disco in a community centre without anyone noticing or remembering such an unusual occasion.

Harris aside, it is very dangerous for newspapers to deliberately print known lies.
We shrug it off, but to me, it is an assault on decency and we should not put up with it.


Also, what sort of person PREFERS a small child to have been assaulted, than not?


Sorry for the ranting. The red mist came down when I saw all this.

It seems that the Mirror has pulled this story. It's showing up as 'page not found', unless my computer has developed a glitch.

www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/rolf-harri...ictim-wendy-16530755

Maybe the Mirror at least has cottoned on to the fact that they've been had.

I agree, Sheba. I suspect she made the whole thing up for financial gain.

Wonder what the brother's role was. The Daily Mail article says "Paul has always blamed himself for failing to chaperone his younger sister at the disco, where Harris fondled her. He explained: 'At the time, it wasn't cool to be seen out with a younger sister, so I went off with my mates instead."

How could you remember not accompanying your sister to an event that didn't happen?

There used to be an article (Daily Mail, if I remember correctly) featuring the brother prominently, which I can no longer find, but this Mirror article quotes the brother, referring to a photo of his sister as a little girl: "“I’ve kept it for years in the belief that it might one day prove useful. So now it’s time for Harris to study it carefully, and reflect on the damage he caused her. “He’s so arrogant he probably won’t recall the picture, so I’m going to send him a copy with a covering letter."

Potential usefulness seems an odd reason to keep a sister's childhood photo. And if you really thought she had been the victim of a paedophile, why on earth would you feed that person's proclivities by sending them a photo of her as a child?

The Daily Mail has now updated its article.
Original "Rolf Harris's youngest victim..."
Current version "Rolf Harris's youngest alleged victim..." with mention of overturned conviction

Correction: actually, there may not have been another article featuring the brother. I remember the photos of him in his finery and his letter to Rolf and references to the childhood photo. The Mirror article has all these, so perhaps it's the one I remember.

"On his advice, Wendy rejected Harris’ first and second offers of £12,500 and £18,000 as insulting and insufficient from a celebrity worth millions."

Wonder if he gave her any other advice.

One thing to say.


KARMA

Looks as if police withholding evidence from the defence was a factor in Rolf's case. Wonder if the info on the fantasist lorry driver was all they withheld.

BBC: Rolf Harris indecent assault conviction overturned

He thanked his legal team, led by Stephen Vullo QC, for "finally" proving his innocence of the alleged crime, which he said was backed up by a "fantasist" claiming to be the sole witness.

The man claimed to have been on leave from the military when he saw Harris in Portsmouth, but Mr Vullo's team proved he had never served in the armed forces - he was a lorry driver who had never left the UK.

Harris claims this information was in the hands of the police "from day one" but was not given to his first legal team "by mistake".
The Independent: Dozens of sexual offence cases dropped because vital evidence withheld from defence lawyers, report finds

In light of the findings, the Criminal Bar Association (CBA) called for a wider inquiry, while the National Police Chiefs Council (NPCC) conceded that they “get it wrong in too many cases”.
Wendy said herself that the police helped her. "The police helped me but the court case was very stressful." (source)

Birmingham Live have taken it down as well.

There is a real cracker in the Sun (and I don't mean the web address):

www.thesun.co.uk/news/9313352/rolf-harri...ndy-wild-dead-abuse/

Wendy, who disliked seeking compensation, hit back at Harris after being upset by a letter he sent to a pal from jail.

Disliked seeking compensation?! This doesn't appear to be consistent with getting the ill-gotten windfall compensation upped from £12,500 to £18,000 to £22,000.

One thing that intrigues me is why her allegation became Count 1 when she was not the original or main complainant. I do wonder if because of her age at the time of the alleged incident it had greater shock value and was thought likely to have some sort of benchmark value when it came to evaluating the others?

It seems Metro, too, has amended its article. The Star has removed its one altogether. Just Manchester Evening News' offering remains, as far as I can tell. Originals on the Wayback Machine.

Sounds as if Rolf's lawyers may have been taking action.

FYI

I hsve no idea who else wrote to the Mailonline but I did and the response I got back see below

On 19-Jun-19 6:41 PM, Michelle Core wrote:
>
> Dear John,
>
>
>
> Thank you for your email, which has been passed to me for attention.
>
>
>
> Accuracy is always of paramount importance to us, as is dealing with any matters requiring attention as swiftly and effectively as possible.
>
>
>
> We have amended this article online and had our cuttings marked accordingly.
>
>
>
> Once again, our thanks to you for taking the time and trouble to write bringing the matter to our attention.
>
>
>
> Best regards,
>
>
>
> Michelle
>
>
>
> Michelle Core
>
> Senior Editorial Compliance Officer
>
>
> Description: Description: Description: pastedGraphic.pdf
>
> MailOnline | Northcliffe House, 2 Derry Street, London, W8 5TT
>
> T: +44 (0) 203 61 (+ext)
> E: Michelle.Core@mailonline.co.uk
>
> W: dailymail.co.uk
>
>
>
>
>
> From: MailOnline [mailto:no-reply@mailonline.com]
> Sent: 17 June 2019 21:56
> To: Editorial Dailymailonline <editorial@mailonline.co.uk>
> Subject: [CONTACT] Press Enquiries
>
>
>
> Press Enquiries
>
> User query:
>
> Your name: John Marsh
>
> Your email:
>
> Enquiry: Re Rolf Harris youngest victim Wendy Wild died. Facts are totally incorrect in your article Rolf Harris claimed event never happen and this conviction was quashed on Appeal. She lied!!!
>

Good for you for contacting them. It could very well have been your message that made them act. I wouldn't have known how to get their e-mail address, though I see that there's an online form for complaining. I don't have much faith in these online forms, but perhaps you used this and your message got through? I once wrote a snail mail letter to a DMail journalist about another aspect of Rolf's case that seemed to point to another accuser making it up but there was no reply. I wasn't able to find his e-mail address and don't use Twitter. Some newspapers seem to publish their journalists e-mail addresses but the DMail doesn't as far as I can tell.

The Manchester Evening News is still running with the original story four days later:

www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/news/uk-...harris-died-16441407

The youngest victim of Rolf Harris has died - she was seven when he attacked her at a children's disco

'I'm not saying he's got blood on his hands or suppose he cares one jot about her passing but he should be aware of the grim legacy he left her to cope with'

I hope Rolf Harris's lawyers are watching.

£22,000+ is a grim legacy indeed.

Good for you, wjlmarsh! I know a few of us tried to inform both the papers and individual journalists either through comments or tweets, but yours is the only reply I have seen.

Unfortunately, the printed papers and original articles online will have been read by many; rather fewer will see the corrected versions.

Anyway, many thanks for sharing. Let's hope it begins to make a difference.

Sheba Bear wrote:
The Manchester Evening News is still running with the original story four days later:

www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/news/uk-...harris-died-16441407

The youngest victim of Rolf Harris has died - she was seven when he attacked her at a children's disco

'I'm not saying he's got blood on his hands or suppose he cares one jot about her passing but he should be aware of the grim legacy he left her to cope with'

I hope Rolf Harris's lawyers are watching.

£22,000+ is a grim legacy indeed.
Right, I have taken a leaf out of wjlmarsh's book and e-mailed the editor to complain. E-mail address is in the contact link at the bottom of the web page. But I won't be holding my breath that anything will be done, as others no doubt have already complained.