ABC trial

The ABC Trial was a trial of charges under sections 1 and 2 of the Official Secrets Act 1911 trial in United Kingdom. It took place in 1978 and is named after the three defendants: Crispin Aubrey, John Berry and Duncan Campbell. Aubrey was a journalist for Time Out, John Berry was a former corporal in signals intelligence (SIGINT), and Duncan Campbell was an investigative journalist.

One of the prosecution witnesses was an anonymous SIGINT officer, referred to as Colonel B. He was later identified as Colonel Hugh Anthony Johnstone, due to his publications in open army journals.

The trial found that the information came almost entirely from open publications, some in the United States. The defendants were found guilty, but no custodial sentences were imposed.

Timeline

• 18 February 1977: Aubrey and Campbell (the two journalists) interviewed Berry
• 20 February 1977: All three men were arrested and charged under section 2 of the Official Secrets Act 1911 (Berry was charged with "communicating classified information to unauthorised persons", and Campbell and Aubrey with "unauthorised receipt of classified information")
• 24 May 1977: Further charges were added under section 1 of the Official Secrets Act
• 9 August 1977: Additional charge under section 1 against Duncan Campbell, for collecting information
• November 1977: Committal hearing at Tottenham Magistrates Court. First appearance of Colonel B as a prosecution witness.
• 5 September 1978: Trial opens at the Old Bailey in front of Mr Justice Willis
• 18 September 1978: Trial stopped after jury foreman exposed as a former SAS officer
• 3 October 1978: Second trial opens in front of Mr Justice Mars-Jones
• 24 October 1978: All section 1 charges dropped
• 17 November 1978: Aubrey, Berry and Campbell receive non-custodial sentences

References

• Campbell, Duncan (1979). Official Secrecy and British Libertarianism
• Aubrey, Crispin (1981). Who's Watching You? Britain's Security Services & the Official Secrets Act (1st ed.). Penguin Books. ISBN 0-14-022283-9.
• Robertson, Geoffrey (1999). The Justice Game, Vintage Books. ISBN 0-09-958191-4

External links

• The ABC Trial via archive.org
• GCHQ and me - my life unmasking British Eavesdroppers; Duncan Campbell, Aug 3, 2015