An appeal by Ameen Jogee saw the law on joint enterprise drastically changed, but his fate still hangs in the balance
The next steps for Ameen Jogee, the young man responsible for the total rewrite of the joint enterprise doctrine, have finally been revealed.
After an anxious two-month wait, it has been revealed that Jogee — who is currently in prison for murder — will face a re-trial.
The 20 something’s appeal to the Supreme Court resulted in one of the — if not the — most exciting legal development of the year so far.
Represented by legal twitterati heavyweights Adam Wagner and Felicity Gerry QC, Jogee managed to convince the Supreme Court bench — including law student faves Lord Neuberger and Lady Hale — that the mens rea needed to engage the joint enterprise doctrine was too stringent, and in need of reform.
This revolutionary judgment dramatically changed the law on joint enterprise (law school syllabuses included) — and prompted a wave of really, really bad media reporting.
But, in and amongst all the frenzy, Jogee’s future remained uncertain. Neuberger, at the end of his February judgment, said this:
The choice of disposal is whether to quash the appellant’s conviction for murder and order a re-trial or whether to quash his conviction for murder and substitute a conviction for manslaughter. We invite the parties’ written submissions on that question.
So, despite the court’s revolutionary decision, Jogee was kept in prison after judgment was handed down. He was in for a tense wait, a wait that’s finally over.
The court has now decided to issue an order directing Jogee to be re-tried on the charge of murder at an as yet unknown Crown Court. An alternative of manslaughter will also be included on the indictment. He will be remanded in custody awaiting this trial.
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