A Harrogate barrister has been announced as the youngest ever black and minority ethnic crown court judge in the UK.
Ayesha Smart, 34, can now sit as a Recorder in crown courts across the north east of England.
As well as being the youngest non-white person to take up the role, she will be the third youngest person from any background to be selected.
The process of becoming a judge is complex, involving two sets of exams, a role play exercise and an interview – and the final approval has to be given by the King.
Ayesha told the Stray Ferret:
“Everybody says it takes several goes at the process to get through, so I thought I would give it a go and at least I know what it’s like.
“I anticipated I might be one of the youngest ones in the exams, so I assumed I wouldn’t get anywhere. It was a bit of a nice surprise when I got it!”
Ayesha, who lives near Killinghall, attended Ashville College when she moved to Nidderdale with her family when she was 14.
She went on to study A levels in biology, chemistry and maths, as well as music which she sat early, at St Aidan’s and St John Fisher Associated Sixth Form, before completing an undergraduate degree in medical sciences at the University of Leeds.
Her first professional job was as a pathologist at Harrogate District Hospital, but she decided to turn to the law and completed a conversion course in Leeds.
Quickly securing a pupilage place to complete her training, she was called to the bar in 2014, and has since been working in crown courts around Yorkshire.
Her appointment as Recorder, confirmed on Wednesday this week, means she will undertake an induction before sitting in the role for at least 30 days a year.
Ayesha says she is not nervous about the appointment, adding:
“I come from a science background before I went into law. For me, analysing things and coming to a decision is the bit I find easier.
“For the induction course, we get packed up in a group of other Recorders. Having to do it all in front of them will be slightly nerve-wracking!
“I’m kind of excited – I just want to get going.”
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To begin with, Ayesha will continue to work as a barrister part-time. She can then decide whether to continue the dual role or move to be a full-time judge.
She hopes she will help the justice service to tackle a huge backlog of cases that has built up in recent years. She added:
“One of the two-day trials I’m working on, the earliest date we could get for the trial was next October. That’s how backlogged everything is at the moment.
“If one of my trials [as a barrister] collapses and I end up with a bunch of dates free, they may say, ‘we’ve got some cases you can hear’.”
And that is not the only way in which Ayesha hopes to make a difference.
As a pioneering BAME woman, she is aware that her presence will be noticed by the people in front of her.
She said:
Doubt cast on Harrogate murder suspect’s claim“The bar, as a profession, is all old, white, posh people. At least with people like me coming through, it’s a bit more representative of society.
“So many defendants aren’t white. If they see people more like them, it just helps in giving a better perception of fairness.
“Having somebody slightly younger probably helps as well – a more modern way of thinking rather than an old-fashioned approach to everything.
“The drug sentencing guidelines, they’ve had to put a reminder to judges that Blacks and Asians typically get a harsher sentence and ask them to remember that.
“Having someone who appreciates cultural differences and biases, you are a bit more alive to making sure people are treated equally.”
Doubt has been cast on a murder suspect’s claim that he was not involved in the death of Gracijus Balciauskas at a flat on Mayfield Grove in Harrogate last year.
Jaroslaw Rutowicz, 39, and Vitalijus Koreiva, 36, are accused of murdering Mr Balciauskas at a flat on Mayfield Grove in Harrogate on December 20 last year.
The trial at Leeds Crown Court began two weeks ago with the prosecution giving evidence. The court heard how Mr Balciauskas’s body was found wrapped in a rug.
Mr Rutowicz took the stand last week to begin his defence. He claimed Mr Koreiva violently killed Gracijus Balciauskas after a drunken game of chess turned ugly — and then threatened to do the same to him if he dialled 999 for help.
Today Mr Rutowicz was cross-examined by Mr Koreiva’s barrister, Peter Moulson QC, who suggested his version of events was “simply a lie”.
‘In shock’
Much of Mr Moulson’s questioning focused on why Mr Rutowicz did not call the police until almost 18 hours after the alleged murder took place.
The court had previously been shown CCTV footage of Mr Rutowicz leaving the flat and returning several times to buy alcohol in the hours after Mr Balciauskas died.
Mr Moulson QC said:
“For almost 18 hours after your friend sustained his injuries, you went backwards and forwards to the flat voluntarily. You were never being threatened by Mr Koreiva, that is simply a lie.”
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During today’s hearing, Mr Rutowicz repeatedly said that he was in shock after witnessing the death of Mr Balciauskas.
Mr Rutowicz repeated his previous claim that he had been threatened by Mr Koreiva with his life if he called the police. He said Mr Koreiva’s nickname in Harrogate was the “crazy Russian” and he had an unpredictable character.
He said:
“It was that fear. Nobody had threatened me before in my life like that, that he would find me and kill me. As long as that aggression was there I kept coming back.”
Harrowing images
The court was again shown harrowing video images, filmed on Mr Rutowicz’s phone, of Mr Balciauskas bloodied and barely conscious after being assaulted at the flat on Mayfield Grove.
Mr Moulson QC suggested the reason he filmed the encounter was to use it as a threat against Mr Balciauskas if he “crossed” the pair again, which Mr Rutowicz denied.
He said:
“[I filmed it] so I could report to police what Vitalijus had done. I didn’t kill him. I didn’t beat him.”
The afternoon finished with Mr Koreiva on the stand beginning his evidence. The trial continues tomorrow.