Lord Janner Appears In Court For Sex Abuse Hearing After Judge Threatened To Arrest Him
Lord Janner Appears At Court After Threat Of Arrest
Sarah Ann Harris— The Huffington Post UK/PA
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Lord Janner appeared in court for just 59 seconds after a judge threatened to arrest the 87-year-old, who has advanced dementia, unless he turned up in person.
Wearing a blue baseball cap, raincoat and green jumper and escorted by his daughter, he arrived at Westminster Magistrates Court for the short hearing on Friday afternoon.
According to the BBC's Tom Symonds, Lord Janner looked towards the press and public gallery and chuckled slightly before taking a seat.
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Lord Janner arrives in court on Friday
Danny Shaw said that the peer said "ooh" as he arrived, looking "completely bewildered" and "very frail".
The Guardian's Josh Halliday said that once the brief proceedings were over, his daughter said to him: "Right dad, that's it, we're off, we're going to go home, have an ice cream".
He was granted unconditional bail until his next appearance at Southwark Crown Court on 1 September.
He failed to attend court earlier in the day to face allegations of chid abuse stretching as far back as the 1960s.
"I'm warning you that as time progresses I'm going to turn to the prosecution and say lets get a warrant to have him arrested. Let's not waste time."
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Media wait outside the court
She added that Janner's appearance "must be done in a humane way. I feel very strongly of that."
His defence lawyer proposed that he appear via video link, but was rejected on grounds that it did not meet legal requirements because Lord Janner had been summoned to attend.
Paul Ozin argued that he wanted to facilitate the his appearance "one form or another".
The peer's lawyers have previously tried to prevent him appearing on grounds of ill health.
Although a review of the case concluded that there was sufficient evidence to prosecute, the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) said it was inevitable that Janner would be found unfit to enter a plea, instruct his legal team, challenge or give evidence.
He is therefore now facing a "trial of facts", the likely outcome of which is an absolute discharge without punishment or conviction, the CPS have said.
Lord Janner Appears At Court To Face Child Abuse Charges
Lord Janner Appears At Court To Face Child Abuse Charges(01 of12)
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LONDON, ENGLAND - AUGUST 14: Lord Greville Janner leaves at Westminster Magistrates' Court on August 14, 2015 in London, England. The 87-year-old ex-MP, who was diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease in 2009, is due to appear in court in relation to 22 charges alleged to have taken place from the 1960s to the 1980s. Lawyers for Lord Janner argued in the High Court that he was too ill to attend court but judges ruled that his attendance was in the public interest. (Photo by Rob Stothard/Getty Images) (credit:Rob Stothard via Getty Images)
BRITAIN-POLITICS-COURT-CHILD-SEX-ABUSE(02 of12)
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Lord Greville Janner (L) is driven from Westminster magistrates court in central London on August 14, 2015 after being charged with historical child sex offences. Lord Janner faces 22 charges spanning the 1960s to the 1980s and was told the next hearing will be on 1 September.AFP PHOTO / JUSTIN TALLIS (Photo credit should read JUSTIN TALLIS/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:JUSTIN TALLIS via Getty Images)
BRITAIN-POLITICS-COURT-CHILD-SEX-ABUSE(03 of12)
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Lord Greville Janner (L) departs Westminster magistrates court in central London on August 14, 2015 after being charged with historical child sex offences. Lord Janner faces 22 charges spanning the 1960s to the 1980s and was told the next hearing will be on 1 September.AFP PHOTO / JUSTIN TALLIS (Photo credit should read JUSTIN TALLIS/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:JUSTIN TALLIS via Getty Images)
Lord Janner Appears At Court To Face Child Abuse Charges(04 of12)
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LONDON, ENGLAND - AUGUST 14: Lord Greville Janner arrives at Westminster Magistrates Court on August 14, 2015 in London, England. The 87-year-old ex-MP, who was diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease in 2009, is due to appear in court in relation to 22 charges alleged to have taken place from the 1960s to the 1980s. Lawyers for Lord Janner argued in the High Court that he was too ill to attend court but judges ruled that his attendance was in the public interest. (Photo by Rob Stothard/Getty Images) (credit:Rob Stothard via Getty Images)
BRITAIN-POLITICS-COURT-CHILD-SEX-ABUSE(05 of12)
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Lord Greville Janner arrives at Westminster magistrates court in central London on August 14, 2015. Janner is appearing in court to face child abuse allegations after his lawyers failed in a final attempt to prevent him from being forced to attend.AFP PHOTO / NIKLAS HALLE'N (Photo credit should read NIKLAS HALLE'N/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:NIKLAS HALLE'N via Getty Images)
BRITAIN-POLITICS-COURT-CHILD-SEX-ABUSE(06 of12)
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Lord Greville Janner (L) arrives at Westminster magistrates court in central London on August 14, 2015. Janner is appearing in court to face child abuse allegations after his lawyers failed in a final attempt to prevent him from being forced to attend.AFP PHOTO / NIKLAS HALLE'N (Photo credit should read NIKLAS HALLE'N/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:NIKLAS HALLE'N via Getty Images)
BRITAIN-POLITICS-COURT-CHILD-SEX-ABUSE(07 of12)
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British Barrister Paul Ozin, a member of Lord Greville Janner's defence team arrives at Westminster magistrates court in central London on August 14, 2015. Senior British politician Lord Greville Janner must appear in court in person to face a string of child sex abuse charges despite suffering from severe dementia, a magistrate ruled today. AFP PHOTO / NIKLAS HALLE'N (Photo credit should read NIKLAS HALLE'N/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:NIKLAS HALLE'N via Getty Images)
Lord Janner Appears At Court To Face Child Abuse Charges(08 of12)
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LONDON, ENGLAND - AUGUST 14: Journalists wait outside Westminster Magistrates' Court on August 14, 2015 in London, England. Lord Janner has failed to appear at court despite judges at the High Court ruling he must attend a hearing. The 87-year-old ex-MP, who was diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease in 2009, is due to appear in court in relation to 22 charges alleged to have taken place from the 1960s to the 1980s. Lawyers for Lord Janner argued in the High Court that he was too ill to attend court but judges ruled that his attendance was in the public interest. (Photo by Rob Stothard/Getty Images) (credit:Rob Stothard via Getty Images)
Historic sex abuse allegations(09 of12)
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Lord Janner arrives by car at Westminster Magistrates Court in London, to face child abuse charges. (credit:Anthony Devlin/PA Wire)
Historic sex abuse allegations(10 of12)
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Media queue outside Westminster Magistrates Court in London, where Lord Janner is expected to appear to face child abuse charges after his lawyers lost a High Court bid to prevent him having to attend. (credit:Jonathan Brady/PA Wire)
Historic sex abuse allegations(11 of12)
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Media queue outside Westminster Magistrates Court in London, where Lord Janner is expected to appear to face child abuse charges after his lawyers lost a High Court bid to prevent him having to attend. (credit:Jonathan Brady/PA Wire)
Historic sex abuse allegations(12 of12)
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Media wait outside Westminster Magistrates Court in London, where Lord Janner is expected to appear to face child abuse charges after his lawyers lost a High Court bid to prevent him having to attend. (credit:Anthony Devlin/PA Wire)