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Smith

Barristers Sasha and Jeremy reinvestigate a lethal shooting from 1937, when a barge captain was allegedly murdered by his best friend.

Leading criminal barristers Jeremy Dein QC and Sasha Wass QC reinvestigate a lethal shooting from 1937, when a barge captain was allegedly murdered by his best friend.

Felixstowe Docks, 1937. On 23 October the deceased body of barge skipper Albert Baker was found below deck aboard his vessel. He had been shot three times at close range with his own pistol, one that needed reloading after each shot had been fired.

Yet mysteriously none of the dock workers heard any gunfire, and Baker鈥檚 close friend, and the barge鈥檚 only other crewman, Walter Smith had disappeared. Police tracked down Smith to a pub in nearby Ipswich. He had been drinking for most of the previous 48 hours and gave two contradictory statements to police while still under the influence of alcohol.

Even though no motive could be established, Walter Smith was arrested and charged with the murder of his friend and colleague. After a three-day trial at the Suffolk Assizes, Walter Smith was found guilty of Albert Baker鈥檚 murder, and he was hanged at Norwich prison on 8 March 1938.

Now two relatives of Walter Smith, mother and daughter Catherine and Connie, are looking to uncover the truth about what really happened on the barge on the day that Albert Baker was killed, and they have enlisted the help of Sacha and Jeremy. The case against their relative was a controversial one that relied on the statement that Smith had given while under the influence of alcohol.

Sasha and Jeremy reassess the original conviction with the help of a ballistics expert and a forensic psychiatrist to get a modern-day perspective on the key evidence that was used to convict Walter Smith of murder. Will they be able to question the safety of the original conviction?

43 minutes

Credits

Role Contributor
Presenter Sasha Wass
Presenter Jeremy Dein
Director James Pearson
Producer Gary John Senior
Series Producer James Pearson
Executive Producer Mike Benson
Executive Producer Simon Cooper
Production Manager Johanna Scammell
Production Department Michael Klokkos
Production Company Chalkboard TV

Broadcasts