BLUNDERS THAT FAILED TRAGIC FAMILY.

Byline: NATHAN YATES

POLICE and prosecutors were blamed yesterday for a series of blunders in the Damilola Taylor murder inquiry.

A review of the case called for sweeping reform of the criminal justice system.

The probe headed by John Sentamu, the Bishop of Birmingham, found deep flaws.

It made 23 recommendations for changes in the way investigations are carried out.

The murdered schoolboy's parents, Richard and Gloria, said the report showed that British justice was "faulty". Mr Taylor said: "We have not seen justice and we are still hoping that justice will be done.

"We don't want another tragedy of this nature." The review identified the treatment of a 14-year-old witness known as Bromley as a key failing.

Her testimony was ruled unreliable after she was put up in a hotel, ran up a large phone bill at public expense and was offered the prospect of reward money.

The 54-page report said more effort should have been made to test the truth of Bromley's statements. It added: "The absence of any process to test the veracity of Bromley's testimony before trial left the prosecution of the case vulnerable to problems."

The failure of police to check one of the suspect's alibis was also criticised.

The youth was said to have used his mobile phone more than a mile away at a time when police claimed he was taking part in the murder.

The inquiry called for radical reform of the rules of evidence which saw much of the prosecution case being excluded.

Defence lawyers should also have to disclose all their material to the prosecution even if it undermined their own case, said the report.

It urged a better balance between the rights of defendants and victims of crime, and recommended changes in the treatment of vulnerable witnesses.

The inquiry advised that in every case where the media offers a reward to catch culprits, detectives should be consulted.

Dr Sentamu said: "Aspects of the investigation could have been handled better.

"As a nation we owe this to the memory of Damilola Taylor."

The review acknowledged that the Metropolitan Police had improved since the botched Stephen Lawrence inquiry in 1993. It praised the police response in the initial stages of the Damilola investigation.

But the report criticised the way officers tried to gather information on the four defendants while they were on remand in young offenders' institutions.

On the criminal justice system, it said there should be greater trust in juries to consider all the evidence available. The report declared: "We believe that some of the evidence excluded from the jury in this case probably had a significant effect on the outcome of the trial.

"Greater trust in juries to objectively consider all the evidence that is potentially available in a trial is an issue which merits serious consideration by government when considering their proposed reforms.""

Up to 100 officers worked on the murder case, but after charges were brought the number was cut to 22 and even those were subsequently assigned to other murder investigations.

Metropolitan Police Commissioner Sir John Stevens accepted the report's criticisms. He said the circumstances of Damilola Taylor's death had shocked the nation.

Sir John added: "The lack of justice for Mr and Mrs Taylor and their family is a deep tragic concern to me and the Metropolitan Police Service."

The Crown Prosecution Service made its own report into the case to coincide with Dr Sentamu's review.

Director of Public Prosecutions Sir David Calvert-Smith QC concluded that the decision to continue with the murder trial of four teenagers was "the right thing to do".

Sir David said there would have been grounds for strong criticism of the prosecution if it had failed to put what evidence there was before a judge and jury.

CAPTION(S):

PROBE: Bishop Sentamu; PARENTS: Gloria and Richard Taylor yesterday