Featuring Professor Barry Peachey – Principal of A. G. Fox Law
An undercover Panorama investigation has found some paid expert witnesses prepared to provide helpful court reports despite a client’s confession.
Only one of nine expert witnesses approached did not want to get involved after the reporters admitted “guilt”.
They included animal expert Professor Barry Peachey who suggested a false defence for a reporter who “confessed” to interfering with a badger sett.
He later insisted his report was truthful and accurate.
Secret filming
Four of the expert witnesses Panorama approached provided court-ready reports. All were caught on camera flouting the rules.
One was animal scientist Professor Barry Peachey, who specialises in the law protecting badgers.
The reporter told him he had deliberately put a dog in a sett in pursuit of a badger, an offence that can carry a six-month jail sentence. He said he feared he had been filmed by a passer-by and could face prosecution.
During the secret filming, Professor Peachey acknowledged the reporter had broken the law.
“What you’ve done and what they can prove are two entirely different things,” he told him.
He continued: “Your defence is that this was a pure accident… You were walking your dog along and the dog suddenly saw a badger and dived down a hole and all you were trying to do is get it back.”
He then produced a report for use in court, which correctly described the badger sett as active, but which also set up the false defence by saying the sett was not visible to the casual passer-by.
Prof Peachey also said he would be willing to give evidence in court saying that it was “highly likely” the dog entered the sett by accident.
In total he charged £2,223 for his report.
He said his report was truthful and accurate and he had no financial incentive not to tell the truth. He said the facts of the incident had not been made clear and he would never lie in court.