Caroline Flack ‘show trial’ decision to be reviewed by prosecutors after Love Island star’s death

Prosecutors are to review their assault case against Caroline Flack following criticism of the “show trial” she was facing when she died.

The Love Island presenter was found in her flat in east London on 15 February after taking her own life.

She had been due to stand trial this week for allegedly assaulting her boyfriend, Lewis Burton, in December, having pleaded not guilty.

Burton, 27, has said he did not support the prosecution and just hours after Flack‘s death, her management released a statement hitting out at the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) for pressing ahead with the trial despite knowing she was “vulnerable”.

“The CPS should look at themselves and how they pursued a show trial that was not only without merit but not in the public interest,” Francis Ridley, of Money Talent Management, said at the time. “And ultimately resulted in significant distress to Caroline.”

Now, the CPS is to examine the decision to continue with the prosecution with a post-case debriefing.

The findings of such reviews, which are said to be standard practice for certain cases, are not usually made public.

In a separate review, the Met Police had referred itself to the police watchdog, the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC), over the contact it had with Flack, 40, before her death.

However, the IOPC has now said that no formal investigation is needed in to officers’ contact with the star, as they have found “no causal link” between police actions and her death.

Met Police officers last had contact with Flack on 13 December 2019, when she was in custody, nearly two months before her death, the watchdog said. At that time, officers “arranged for her to see a healthcare professional and relevant policy and procedure was followed to give her further guidance”.

The referral has now been returned to the force’s department for professional standards, it said.

After Flack’s death, it also emerged that paramedics had been called out to her flat the previous day.

The TV star stepped down from the last series of Love Island just weeks ahead of it airing in January, after she was arrested and charged with assault by beating.

In the aftermath of the incident, she told police “I did it” and then warned that she would kill herself, Highbury Corner Magistrates’ Court heard during her first appearance.

Following her death, Love Island paid tribute, dedicating the final of its first winter series to the host who had been at the helm since the show relaunched in the summer of 2015.

Flack’s family also released an unpublished Instagram post she wrote days before she took her own life.

In the statement, she wrote that her arrest for allegedly assaulting Mr Burton meant “within 24 hours my whole world and future was swept from under my feet”.

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Flack also said in the post: “I have always taken responsibility for what happened that night. Even on the night.

“But the truth is… It was an accident.

“I’ve been having some sort of emotional breakdown for a very long time.

“But I am not a domestic abuser.

“We had an argument and an accident happened. An accident.”

Flack had been subject to much scrutiny in the press and on social media following her arrest in December.

On Tuesday, a “Caroline’s Law” petition calling for new and stricter laws regarding the British media, which had been signed online by more than 850,000 people, was handed in to government by campaign group 38 Degrees.

Anyone feeling emotionally distressed or suicidal can call Samaritans for help on 116 123 or email jo@samaritans.org in the UK. In the US, call the Samaritans branch in your area or 1 (800) 273-TALK

(c) Sky News 2020: Caroline Flack ‘show trial’ decision to be reviewed by prosecutors after Love Island star’s death