Harriet Wistrich, the lawyer who represented two victims of John Worboys, the 'black cab rapist', has spoken out after the parole board's decision to release him was successfully challenged. Worboys was convicted of assaulting 12 women, including one count of rape, and suspected of attacking up to 100 more. He was deemed by a parole board in January to no longer be a danger to the public, but a high court challenge by his victims kept him in prison.
Wistrich said her clients felt 'delighted and relieved and vindicated' by the outcome, but stressed that the vindication does not erase the years they have lived with the trauma. She argued that the original decision to release Worboys highlighted a broken criminal justice system, particularly in how it assesses the risk of reoffending among sexual offenders. She noted that over 80% of sexual assault victims do not report the crime, and only 6-7% of those reports result in conviction, making statistical risk assessments unreliable.
Since the public outcry, the parole board has made procedural changes, including allowing victims to attend hearings without permission and request summaries of parole decisions. The Ministry of Justice also opened a review into reconsideration of parole board decisions. However, Wistrich warned that more cases like Worboys will arise without an effective system to handle sexual assault allegations.
Wistrich also expressed alarm at a change in approach by the Metropolitan Police, announced by Commissioner Cressida Dick, which instructs officers to abandon their pro-belief stance in favour of 'an open mind' when investigating sexual offences. Wistrich described this as 'alarming, shocking and astonishing', arguing that officers should start from the premise that an allegation is true and investigate accordingly.
