Court told that Mail on Sunday probed Chris Huhne over ‘liaisons with men’ and crabs infection
A court heard on Friday that a journalist with the Mail on Sunday approached a part-time judge and barrister and heard claims that disgraced former Climate Change Secretary Chris Huhne had “liaisons with men”.
Constance Briscoe also told the court that she discussed with a reporter that Mr Huhne had given crabs to his ex-wife Vicky Pryce.
The 56-year-old barrister, who has been suspended from the judiciary, saw her third day on trial today for allegedly perverting the course of justice.
Former Lib Dem MP Mr Huhne and Miss Price were themselves jailed last year for perverting the course of justice, but during the investigation, Miss Briscoe was also charged with lying to police.
She originally told police detectives that she had not dealt with the media, when she was questioned in a speeding points case. Emails later emerged showing that she had extensive contact with journalists.
Miss Briscoe then maintained that she had not had contact with journalists over the speeding issue, but did say that she had spoken about other potential stories.
When asked to name the stories discussed with Mail on Sunday journalist David Dillon, Miss Briscoe claimed that she was asked whether Mr Huhne, the former Eastleigh Lib Dem MP, had “liaisons” with men.
She also said Mr Dillon asked whether he had infected Miss Pryce with pubic lice.
In a video showed to the court given by Miss Briscoe under caution, she said the story about the speeding fines had spurred on media interest.
She said: “Dillon had contacted me, and he had certainly contacted Vicky”, and that they were looking for stories about Mr Huhne.
“They were looking at the speeding story that I couldn’t assist them on but there were other stories as well that the papers, in particular Mr Dillon, were interested in… He had discovered somehow that Vicky Pryce had called off her engagement… because Chris Huhne had said to Vicky that he had had liaisons… with men.”
Saying she was unsure whether to say or not, but was wary of perjuring herself, Miss Briscoe continued: “When Chris was in wherever he was a European MEP he had come home and he had infected Vicky with crabs.
“And the explanation that he had given when Vicky had crabs was that he had contracted them from the clean sheets in whatever hotel he was in.”
Miss Briscoe denies all charges. She faces three counts of pererting the course of justice – one charge alleges that she gave police inaccurate statements, the second that she deliberately produced an incorrect version of her witness statement for a defence expert and a third that she produced tampered-with copy of a statement.
The trial continues.
