32 Facts About Melford Stevenson

Sir Aubrey Melford Steed Stevenson, PC, usually known as Sir Melford Stevenson, was an English barrister and, later, a High Court judge, whose judicial career was marked by his controversial conduct and outspoken views.

Melford Stevenson was Judge Advocate at the 1945 war crimes trial of former personnel of the German submarine U-852 for their actions in what became known as the Peleus affair.

In 1954 Melford Stevenson represented the government of British Kenya during Jomo Kenyatta's unsuccessful appeal against his conviction for membership of the rebel organisation Mau Mau.

Melford Stevenson was deeply distressed by the execution of Ellis, for whom there had been no defence in law, but whom Home Secretary Gwilym Lloyd George was expected to reprieve.

Two years later, Melford Stevenson took part in the unsuccessful prosecution of John Bodkin Adams for the murder of Edith Alice Morrell.

Melford Stevenson became a High Court judge in 1957, and acquired a reputation for severity in sentencing.

In 1970 Melford Stevenson passed long sentences on eight Cambridge University students who took part in the Garden House riot, and the following year gave Jake Prescott of the Angry Brigade 15 years for conspiracy to cause explosions.

Mr Justice Melford Stevenson retired from the bench in 1979 aged 76, and died at St Leonards in East Sussex on 26 December 1987.

Melford Stevenson was born in Newquay, Cornwall, on 17 October 1902, the eldest child and only son of the Reverend John George Melford Stevenson and his wife Olive, sister of Henry Wickham Steed, journalist and editor of The Times from 1919 until 1922.

Melford Stevenson was determined to become a barrister, and joined the Inner Temple, of which he became the treasurer in 1972.

Melford Stevenson remained there for the rest of his legal career, save for the war years, eventually becoming head of chambers.

Melford Stevenson did very little criminal work in this part of his career.

Melford Stevenson was elected a bencher of the Inner Temple in 1950, and appointed Recorder of Cambridge, a part-time judge, in 1952; he had previously served as Recorder for Rye from 1944 to 1951.

Melford Stevenson was imprisoned until 1959, lived under house arrest until 1961, and became the first president of the newly independent Kenya in 1964.

Also in 1954 Melford Stevenson represented the Marten family in the Crichel Down affair.

Melford Stevenson was probably the most successful barrister of his day.

In 1955, aided by junior counsel Sebag Shaw and Peter Rawlinson, Melford Stevenson defended Ruth Ellis against the charge of murdering her lover.

Melford Stevenson was a leading member of the legal team assisting Sir Reginald Manningham-Buller during the failed prosecution of Dr John Bodkin Adams in 1957.

Melford Stevenson was of the opinion that had he been allowed to, he "could have successfully prosecuted Adams on six murder counts".

Bathurst [Viscount Bledisloe] used to recount the story of Melford Stevenson trying a manslaughter case in which a man who had run over a child pleaded, in extenuation, that he had thought the child was a dog; the judge, a great spaniel lover, promptly gave him the maximum sentence.

Melford Stevenson was appointed a High Court judge on 1 October 1957, and was knighted a few days later.

Melford Stevenson believed that it was the judge's duty to help prevent crime by imposing robust punishments on those found guilty, and he became noted for the severity of his sentencing, which led to occasional calls from the "liberal establishment" for his resignation.

Melford Stevenson noted that the sentences would have been even longer but for the students' exposure to "the evil influence of some members of the university".

Melford Stevenson's sentence was reduced to ten years on appeal.

Melford Stevenson turned down a chance to join the Court of Appeal, a decision he later regretted, and was critical of some of its decisions.

Melford Stevenson was appointed a privy counsellor in the 1973 New Year Honours.

Melford Stevenson [Stevenson] holds the record among Old Bailey judges for having his sentences queried and taken to appeal.

Melford Stevenson holds the record for getting away with it.

Melford Stevenson has gradually become such a stock hate-figure that lawyers tend automatically to advise their clients, if found guilty, to take their cases higher up.

Melford Stevenson married Anna Cecilia Francesca Imelda Reinstein, daughter of a Bavarian hairdresser, in 1929.

Melford Stevenson "turned her [his wife] out" after he discovered that she had been having an affair with Colonel Maurice Buckmaster, head of the French section of the Special Operations Executive.

Melford Stevenson opened his campaign by declaring that in the interests of a clean fight, he would make no allusions to the "alleged homosexuality" of his opponent, Tom Driberg, who heavily defeated him in the vote; Stevenson returned to his legal practice the following year.