Mock Hearings

Overview

Questions surrounding the admissibility and weight of digital open source information have not yet been fully tested in the jurisdiction of England and Wales. As such, in February and March 2021 GLAN and Bellingcat, together with the OSR4Rights project at Swansea University, staged a mock voire dire hearing to test the admissibility of online open source evidence in the courts of England and Wales.

The hearing further aimed to robustly test GLAN and Bellingcat’s methodology against traditional principles of evidence in order to anticipate challenges and strengthen our methodology. 

Read the full write-up in English →

Read the full write-up in Arabic →

Case Focus

The subject of the mock admissibility hearing was a real video depicting an airstrike that occurred on May 7th, 2018 in Sana’a, Yemen. The fictional hearing included legal arguments put forward by prosecution and defence counsel, witness and expert evidence subjected to cross-examination, and a final judicial determination.

Questions Tested

• Open source investigation and analysis can be learnt by any person with a computer and an internet connection—so would it be taken seriously by a Crown Court judge?

• Would a member of Bellingcat or an equivalent organisation be considered an ‘expert’ in the eyes of the court, or would they be considered, in the enduring words of Mr Justice Bingham, “a quack, a charlatan, or an enthusiastic amateur?” 

• Is our purpose-built methodology sufficient to satisfy a court that the investigation was sufficiently thorough and impartial as to be fair to the defendant?

Hearing Outcome

Ultimately, Judge Joanna Korner CMG KC ‘ruled’ that the video was admissible and that the open source analysts in question could be considered ‘experts’ in the eyes of the ‘court’. The hearing also raised and addressed numerous other considerations. 

The hearing was ‘judged’ by Judge Joanna Korner CMG KC (now sitting at the International Criminal Court); Helen Malcolm KC of Three Raymond Buildings and Joshua Kern of 9 Bedford Row acted for the ‘prosecution’; Andrew Cayley KC of Temple Garden Chambers and Shina Animashaun of Garden Court Chambers acted for the ‘defence’. The following people all appeared as expert witnesses: Elliott Higgins, Founder of Bellingcat; Charlotte Godart, Bellingcat Investigator; and Nick Waters, Bellingcat Analyst.

Watch the mock hearing and the judgment below ↓