David Wood

e: David.Wood@CharterChambers.com

Year of Call: 2007 MA (Oxon) Peta Fordham Prize 2006-7

Languages: French

Affiliations: Lawyers for Liberty, Public Access Bar Assn

Specialist Areas: Large Drugs Related Offences, Confiscation, Restraint & Asset Recovery Proceedings, Money Laundering

David Wood joined Charter Chambers in January 2010 on successful completion of his pupillage, after spending a year as a paralegal at Bindmans LLP, where he worked on several high profile VHCC cases.

David has a busy general criminal practice and makes regular appearances in the Crown Court, as well as the Magistrates and Youth Court; he has also appeared in the Court of Appeal and is developing a practice as a led junior. Solicitors value his commitment to combining high standards of representation for his clients with an accessible, common sense approach. His case portfolio is centred on the areas of:

Criminal Law
Drugs
Confiscation
Money Laundering
Public order

He is currently instructed as junior Defence counsel in a forthcoming drugs/money laundering trial at Winchester Crown Court, and recently secured an acquittal at Chelmsford Crown Court in a ‘hit and run’ case in the face of seemingly overwhelming evidence (see R v Hussain in Cases).

David also has experience of defending confiscation and cash detention/forfeiture proceedings under POCA 2002. He has a particular interest in the law of public order.

DRUGS / MONEY LAUNDERING
R v A – Winchester Crown Court (Drug supply/Money Laundering. Led Junior)
R v Davis – Wolverhampton Crown Court (Sole Junior. Defendant alleged to be involved in importation of significant  amounts of crack cocaine into the UK; after negotiations as to acceptable pleas she was sentenced to a custodial term
much shorter than would otherwise have been expected)

DRIVING OFFENCES
R v M – Chelmsford Crown Court (Causing Death by Careless Driving. Led Junior)
R v Hussain – Chelmsford Crown Court (Dangerous Driving/s20 GBH. This was a ‘hit-and-run’ allegation where a woman had been knocked down as she crossed the Epping New Road; the Defendant said that he had not been in the car on the day of the crash. The evidence against the Defendant was very strong – three other men said he was the driver, his fingerprint was on the mirror of the car, there were glass fragments from the windscreen in his top, and he gave a false alibi on first interview with the police. Unanimously acquitted. Sole Junior)

ARMED ROBBERY/CONSPIRACY TO ROB
R v B – Kingston Crown Court (Conspiracy to Rob. Led Junior)
R v Drakou – Court of Appeal (Conspiracy to Rob. David was instructed at very short notice to represent the Applicant in an appeal against conviction and sentence. The sentence was reduced from a 7 year minimum IPP to a 5 year minimum term. Sole Junior)
R v Dawood – Old Bailey (Knife Point Robbery. Acquitted. Sole Junior)

SEXUAL OFFENCES
R v P – Bolton Crown Court (Sexual Activity with a Child. This was an allegation of sexual touching of the Defendant’s step-daughter on her bed; the Defendant said that he had been asleep and had not touched her consciously. Convicted only by 10-2 majority after 5 hours of jury deliberation Sole Junior)
R v Arpaci – Old Bailey (Sexual Assault. Acquitted. Sole Junior)

OTHER
R v Patel – Leicester Crown Court (Bladed Article/Assault on 60 year old woman. Acquitted. Sole Junior)
R v C – Harrow Youth Court (Secured the discontinuance of 9 separate charges levelled against an 11 year old with complex learning difficulties. Sole Junior)

'Law of Public Order and Protest, OUP 2010' - credit for research