Trial of former Chesterfield FC manager James Rowe pushed back to 2024 despite “impassioned plea” to avoid delay to sexual assault case

The trial of James Rowe, 40, was scheduled to begin today (Thursday, December 7) at Derby Crown Court.

Mr Rowe was charged with sexually assaulting a woman on November 24 2021 - to which he has pleaded not guilty.

The trial was delayed this week due to illness, and the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) said that they were unable to find anyone suitable to prosecute the case. The CPS subsequently made an application for the trial to be adjourned.

Peter Eguae, representing Mr Rowe, asked Judge Jonathan Bennett to reject the application for an adjournment.

Mr Eguae said that Mr Rowe’s “life has been on hold” and “his reputation has been tarnished” - adding that Mr Rowe had done “everything to be ready” for the beginning of the trial.

The court heard from Mr Eguae that he believed it was an “injustice" to allow the case to be adjourned through "no fault of Mr Rowe" - due to what he described as “inactivity and inefficiency” on behalf of the CPS.

Judge Bennett rejected what he called an “impassioned plea” from Mr Eguae to dismiss the request for an adjournment.

The Judge told the court that a number of issues had delayed the start of the hearing earlier this week - including a problem with the heating in the courtroom, and a cyber attack that left the prosecution unable to access documents relating to the case.

Judge Bennett added, however, that “sickness is the prime cause why this case cannot proceed. If not, the case would have been opened on Tuesday - that's the fundamental problem.”

READ THIS: Suspected cannabis grow discovered after Heanor house fire which caused 'substantial' damage

The CPS were asked by Judge Bennett to “urgently look at alternative counsel” to ensure the case could proceed today. He said that “numerous efforts” were made to find someone to prosecute, but that these were ultimately unsuccessful.

Judge Bennett said that the "scarcity of people available to prosecute" can lead to delays in hearing cases relating to alleged offences of a sexual nature - along with a lack of judges and courtrooms.

The case has been adjourned until October 7 2024.