Claims that I spied on Baroness Lawrence are 'despicable', Mail journalist tells court
A journalist who led a 25-year campaign for justice for Stephen Lawrence defended himself yesterday against 'despicable allegations' that he had spied on the murdered teenager's mother.
Stephen Wright said accusations that he listened to private conversations inside the Lawrence family home via a secret wire feed were 'nonsense' and told the High Court he was 'completely devastated' to learn of the allegations made against him.
Baroness (Doreen) Lawrence, the mother of murdered Stephen, and Prince Harry are among seven public figures who are suing the Daily Mail and The Mail On Sunday over claims the newspapers gathered information about them unlawfully.
Associated Newspapers, which publishes both titles, denies claims its journalists commissioned private detectives to hack voicemails, intercept landlines, use electronic surveillance or 'blag' their private information.
Baroness Lawrence watched from across the courtroom as Mr Wright – the Mail's former crime editor and her long-term ally in her family's campaign for justice – defended himself against her accusations.
He told the court he was proud of the work he had done on the newspaper's decades-long campaign for justice for Stephen, who was murdered by racist thugs in Eltham, south-east London, in 1993.
He said he had worked ethically, using legitimate sources, and denied he had obtained information on the murder investigation by paying corrupt police officers or through using private detectives to intercept phone calls, use electronic surveillance or blag information from the family.
He told the court: 'The most despicable allegations have been made against me for four years.'
Baroness (Doreen) Lawrence outside court earlier this month with her long-time lawyer Imran Khan KC who also gave evidence in the case
Answering questions from David Sherborne, the barrister leading the case for Baroness Lawrence and the other claimants, Mr Wright continued: 'I've worked tirelessly for 25 years to help the Lawrence family get justice for their son.'
Mr Wright, a married father of two who has won multiple awards for his work on crime and policing, accused the legal team working for the claimants of 'lobbing dirt' and said he was effectively being treated as 'guilty until proven innocent'.
He said he feared for his family's safety because the allegations had cast him 'on the side of the racist and corrupt'.
Lawyers for Baroness Lawrence allege Associated's journalists targeted her with hidden electronic surveillance, intercepted her landline, monitored her bank account and paid police officers for confidential information.
During her evidence last month, she said she had built up trust with the Mail and Mr Wright, but now felt she had been lied to and 'used'.
In his written witness statement, given to the court, Mr Wright said he had been 'completely devastated' when he learned of Baroness Lawrence's allegations against him.
He said: 'To this day, I struggle to understand how she could be persuaded to take such a course of action. She was someone for whom I had the utmost respect.'
The Mail led a lengthy campaign to bring Stephen's killers to justice, including a 1997 front page naming the five main suspects as 'murderers' and challenging them to sue the newspaper for libel.
The trial continues.
