A ‘not guilty’ verdict secured in the Crown Court by defence barrister Sophie Lamb.

Sophie succeeded in excluding bad character following a written submission and oral submissions in court.

We are proud to celebrate the outstanding achievement of our barrister, Sophie Lamb, who has secured a not guilty verdict in her very first Crown Court trial—just weeks after completing her pupillage.

Sophie represented a defendant charged with burglary of a dwelling, a serious allegation arising from an incident last year. The case involved a highly unusual factual matrix: the homeowner reported discovering a stranger inside her home, who fled the scene. A number of peculiar items were reported stolen. While DNA attributed to the defendant was found on a bottle located outside on a bin several hours after the burglary, no forensic evidence was found inside the property. Moreover, a fingerprint discovered on an item within a vehicle linked to the offence did not match the defendant.

The defendant, who was homeless at the time, maintained that his DNA was only present because he had been searching through bins in the area. An item of clothing left behind by the suspect was never tested, and the stolen property was never recovered.

In a key pre-trial success, Sophie made a successful application to exclude bad character evidence, significantly shaping opinion in favour of the defence.

The prosecution’s case was read in full, after which the defendant gave evidence. Following a careful summing up, the jury returned a verdict of not guilty.

This result marks an excellent start to what promises to be a highly successful career at the Bar. All of us at Chambers congratulate her on this early and impressive achievement.