Source: Criminal Case Review Commission (CCRC) published on this website Tuesday 28 July 2026 by Jill Powell
The convictions of a woman who was groomed and sexually exploited as a child have today been quashed by the Crown Court, following a referral by the Criminal Cases Review Commission (CCRC).
The CCRC referred Ms AB’s convictions to the Crown Court in May 2026 after concluding there was a real possibility they would not be upheld because her prosecution may have amounted to an abuse of process.
Ms AB was convicted in December 2002, aged 14, of being carried in a stolen motor vehicle, possession of an imitation firearm and assault. She received a non-custodial sentence.
The CCRC’s investigation found compelling evidence that, at the time of the offences, Ms AB had been the victim of child sexual exploitation and grooming. The CCRC concluded there was a real possibility that the failures of public authorities to identify and protect Ms AB meant she had been unable to effectively participate in the proceedings and consider any defences open to her.
At the time of her convictions, she was said to be “in a relationship” with a man she had met when she was 11 years old. During an interview with the CCRC she explained the man would bring food to her house, flatter her and make her feel special.
Within months, the interactions with the man became sexual, and she was encouraged to have sex with his friends. She explained that he would use violence and emotional blackmail to get her to comply. At the time of her offences, she was living in a children’s home.
The CCRC referral followed publication of Baroness Louise Casey’s National Audit on Group-based Child Sexual Exploitation and Abuse, which highlighted widespread institutional failings in protecting children from grooming gangs. This was the first case referred by the Commission involving the convictions of a grooming gang victim in light of those findings.
CCRC Chair Dame Vera Baird KC said: “We welcome today’s decision. Ms AB was just 14 when these offences were committed. Rather than being recognised as a vulnerable child in need of protection, the evidence shows she was failed by the very institutions that should have kept her safe.
“One can only lament the lack of insight, in particular, from the police at the time, that she was prosecuted, when she should have been protected. She would have had no choice but to plead guilty at the magistrates’ court, which she did, exactly as she had no choice but to commit the offences, since she was, at both times, in the grip of a groomer.
“Our investigation concluded there was a real possibility that, because of those failures, her prosecution amounted to an abuse of process. The Crown Prosecution Service Court has now reached the same conclusion and did not oppose the application today. We are grateful to them for their careful consideration of Ms AB’s case.
“Many children who were victims of grooming and sexual exploitation were treated as offenders rather than children in need of protection. We now have a better understanding of the devastating impact that exploitation, coercion and control can have on a young person’s ability to make free choices.
“The CCRC has received other applications concerning grooming gangs, and there is a real body of in-house expertise to help with them now. We will always be ready to talk with such applicants with the help of a trauma-informed member of a trafficking charity or anyone else who the applicant would like to be with them, so that there is a lesser risk of re-traumatising them by the need to re-visit, perhaps, long-ago times which they will remember potentially with great pain.
“I hope this decision and this reassurance will give confidence to others who may have been in similar circumstances.”
Where new evidence demonstrates that a conviction may be unsafe, the CCRC will investigate carefully and independently. People do not have to approach us on their own; they can ask a solicitor, charity or support organisation to help them make an application.
The CCRC received Ms AB’s application in January 2024. During its investigation, the Commission obtained evidence about the grooming and exploitation she experienced as a child, including evidence that was not before the courts when she pleaded guilty in 2002.
Having reviewed the material, the CCRC concluded there was a real possibility the Crown Court would find the convictions unsafe because the failures to protect Ms AB and investigate the abuse she was suffering deprived her of the opportunity to receive a fair trial and properly advance any available defence.
The Crown Court has today allowed the appeal and quashed the conviction
The CCRC is an independent body set up under the Criminal Appeal Act 1995. It is responsible for independently reviewing suspected and alleged miscarriages of criminal justice in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. It is based in Birmingham and is funded by the Ministry of Justice.
