Falsely convicted man who spent £500k clearing his name is rejected for compensation

Falsely convicted man who spent £500k clearing his name is rejected for compensationImage source, Stephen Fildes / BBCImage caption, Brian Buckle spent five years in prison for crimes he did not commitByClaire KendallBBC NewsPublished7 hours agoA man who was falsely convicted and spent more than five years in prison has said he felt "sick" to learn that his compensation claim has been rejected again.Brian Buckle, from Pembrokeshire, was completely cleared of the sex abuse charges he was jailed for, but the struggle to clear his name cost him £500,000.The Ministry of Justice (MoJ) rejected Buckle's first appeal for compensation last year, prompting the former Justice Minister Alex Davies-Jones to intervene. But he recently discovered that his second appeal has also been rejected.The UK government said it acknowledged the grave impact of miscarriages of justice and was committed to helping people re-build their lives.A long-awaited review of the criminal appeals system in England and Wales, carried out by the Law Commission, said its report on compensation would be published this year.Buckle, from Fishguard, was convicted of historical child sex abuse in 2017 and sentenced to 15 years in prison. His family, including his wife Elaine, vowed to fight for his freedom as they were convinced of his innocence.A five-year legal battle resulted in the Court of Appeal finding Buckle's conviction unsafe and he was immediately released from prison. In a retrial at Swansea Crown Court in 2023, Buckle's barrister Stephen Vullo KC produced new forensic evidence and witnesses, which resulted in a swift unanimous verdict of "not guilty".Image caption, Brian and his wife Elaine, who remained convinced of her husband's innocenceBut proving his innocence cost Buckle and his family £500,000, and the impact on his mental health has been severe."I suffer with PTSD, I'm on medication, I'm just always on edge," he said. "As a f...