Lord Janner will not face a trial of the facts before February over child sex abuse accusations, a judge has ruled.
The 87-year-old former Labour peer is accused of 15 counts of indecent assault and seven counts of a separate sexual offence against nine alleged victims in the 1960s, 70s and 80s.
Mr Justice Sweeney, who oversaw proceedings at the Old Bailey on Tuesday in the absence of the defendant, said there will also be fitness to plead hearing in December, with a provisional trial date set for 22 February 2016. But he warned that the dates may be subject to change.
Last month, Janner, who has Alzheimer’s disease, was forced to attend Westminster magistrates court for 59 seconds after a week-long legal wrangle over the issue. His legal team had been insisting he was too ill to attend in person because of his advanced dementia. Two senior judges ruled that he must attend because of “the obvious and strong public interest in ensuring those summoned to court attend when required”.
Accompanied by a minder and his daughter, he confirmed his name during the first court appearance. Janner, of Muswell Hill, north London, is on unconditional bail.
He was excused from attending the hearing at the Old Bailey on Tuesday, during which a provisional timetable for the case was set.
Janner was Labour MP for Leicester West between 1970 and 1997, before becoming a peer when he left the Commons. He was suspended by the Labour party in April.
A trial of the facts is when a jury hears the evidence against an individual considered too ill for a full trial. It is not considered a trial as such because the defendant cannot put forward a defence.
There is no guilty verdict and the court cannot pass sentence. All it can do is make a hospital order, a supervision order or an order for the defendant’s absolute discharge.
