Jeffrey Israel

Practice Profile

Jeffrey Israel is a leading barrister, listed in the Legal 500 directory as well as in Chambers & Partners, specialising in all aspects of criminal law. Jeffrey was shortlisted by the Legal 500 for Crime & Extradition Junior of the year 2022.

Jeffrey has been instructed as both a leading junior and a junior alone in a wide range of serious criminal matters. He is admired for his robust handling of cases and his fearless approach in Court and is highly sought after by private clients, often on Bar Direct Access, enabling him to oversee every aspect of the case. This approach offers particular reassurance to his clients.

Jeffrey is best known for acting on a Bar Direct Access basis in the successful appeal of Alexander Blackman – known as ‘Marine A’, who was convicted of murdering a dying Taliban insurgent whilst on active service in Helmand province, Afghanistan.

As a result of that landmark success he is regularly instructed to conduct appeals in cases where he did not represent defendants at their original trials. Current Direct Access instructions include appealing the convictions for historic rapes of a highly successful music impresario, an appeal against a murder conviction, and an appeal against a drug importation.

Jeffrey is also highly sought after to represent those who are accused and facing trial. Current instructions include a businessman who is alleged to have caused GBH against his business partner, a city trader who is accused of assaulting a doorman, and a garage owner who is accused of laundering over £6m.

Past cases include defending the ex-boyfriend of Cara Delevingne’s PA who was accused of assaulting her repeatedly, representing a former manager of Tottenham Hotspur FC for speeding, defending Tony Blair’s private secretary accused of rape, and defending the vice-chairman of Tottenham for an alleged assault in Harrod’s Food Hall.     

In addition Jeffrey also accepts instructions on Legal Aid in serious cases. Recently these include representing a defendant in a large-scale drugs conspiracy, a woman accused of poisoning a 4 year old child, and a ‘gangland’ murder

Previously Jeffrey has defended in:

• The murder of a lorry driver in a drunken attack;
• An £8m conspiracy to supply heroin;
• A large-scale nationwide cocaine conspiracy involving 11 defendants;
• A conspiracy to transfer loaded machine-guns by defendants in prison;
• A multi-handed murder allegation arising out of a 'drug war' in a case that involved the US authorities;
• A multi-million pound SFO case involving the creation of false identities and bank accounts that are then used to defraud HMRC;
• The shooting at a uniformed police officer in the course of an armed robbery;
• Human-trafficking for the purpose of forced prostitution;
• A gang-related firearms case where over 100 guns, grenades, and live ammunition were being supplied across the country;
• A large-scale importation of cocaine from South America.
   

As well as being a specialist criminal defence barrister, Jeffrey has a particular interest in Civil Actions against the Police, Judicial Reviews and Public Inquests. He is regularly instructed to advise charities such as MENCAP, National Autistic Society and Guide Dogs for the Blind on matters of potential criminal liability, including in Court of Protection proceedings. He has lectured in this field on topics such as ‘Capacity to Consent to Sex, a Civil and a Criminal Perspective’ and as such has particular expertise in this field.

Marine A

In March 2017 after a legal battle lasting almost 2 years, Jeffrey, led by Jonathan Goldberg QC and leading Senghin Kong, succeeded in winning on appeal the historic case of Marine A, Acting Colour Sergeant Alexander Blackman of the Royal Marines. He had been convicted by court-martial in 2013 of murdering a wounded Taliban terrorist on a battlefield in Afghanistan and had been sentenced to life imprisonment together with reduction to the ranks and dismissal from the Armed Forces with disgrace. An appeal against conviction brought in 2014 by his old legal team had failed completely.

Following a public campaign new grounds of appeal were submitted to the Criminal Cases Review Commission (CCRC) in December 2015.

Once an appeal has been tried and failed, this body represents the only possible route to challenge a miscarriage of justice. However, the CCRC refer less than 3% annually of all the cases they receive back to the Court of Appeal for a new hearing, and therefore it is a formidable mountain to climb. The legal team identified six grounds of appeal and the CCRC upheld three of these grounds as constituting a real possibility that the Court of Appeal would overturn the murder verdict, and referred the case back to the Court of Appeal. Shortly thereafter an expedited hearing was ordered by the Lord Chief Justice.

They succeeded on the first ground argued to reduce murder to manslaughter, thus leading to the Sergeant`s almost immediate release from prison and the quashing of his life sentence and there was no need to litigate the remaining grounds at all. In addition, his dismissal with disgrace from the Armed Forces was rescinded to simple dismissal, and his reduction to the ranks was quashed.

Jeffrey is able to accept instructions direct from the public in appropriate cases. For further information in this regard please contact the Senior Clerk.

Jeffrey's Privacy Policy can be downloaded here.

News

• R v AK [Southwark Crown Court] 2023

  Client acquitted of all charges in £5m money laundering offences

  Led by Jeffrey Israel, Phoebe defended an Italian national charged with multiple money laundering offences alongside multiple co-defendants, many of whom had fled the jurisdiction. The defendant was acquitted of all offences following a six week trial at Southwark Crown Court.

   

• R v DA [Cardiff Crown Court] 2023

  Kidnap, False Imprisonment & Blackmail

  As led junior Phoebe defends in a 12 handed trial involving allegations of kidnap, false imprisonment and blackmail. The prosecution allege that a Harrow gang kidnapped a number of men in Wales and transported one back to London where he was held for ransom. Phoebe is led by Jeffrey Israel.

• Operation Tennyson [Southwark] 2020

  International 'Phishing' Fraud

  Jeffery Israel led Phoebe Bragg in this 5 month case involving over 250,000 pages of evidence.  Defendants accused of international ‘phishing’ fraud and subsequent money laundering. Vast quantities of banking and telephone evidence as the monies were layered from the UK, onto Nigeria via China, giving rise to multi-jurisdictional issues and disclosure requests.

• R v. S [Westminster] 2018

  Alleged assault of fashion designer to Cara Delevinge

  Jeffrey Israel successfully defended a high profile case where it was alleged that the boyfriend of the fashion designer to socialite Cara Delevigne repeatedly assaulted her and controlled her. Following legal argument the case against Jeffrey’s client was dropped and he was acquitted of all charges.

  News report here 

• R v. Kamara & anr [C.C.C.] 2018

  Gang Execution

  Jeffrey Israel instructed by Jon Ross of EBR Attridges, led by James Scobie QC secured the acquittal of Sidique Kamara who was accused of murder having allegedly executed a teenager by plunging a large knife into the victim’s chest in revenge after a gang member was mocked for being caught by police with a samurai sword. The murder took place outside a Tesco Express in Southampton Way, Peckham in front of a number of witnesses.

  Sidique Kamara was positively identified by the victim’s friend who was next to him when he was killed. In addition the prosecution relied on telephone cell site evidence, gang membership evidence, extensive CCTV footage, as well as Sidique Kamara’s ‘no comment’ police interview. The trial lasted 5 weeks.

  There were two defendants and Sidique Kamara was accused of being the stabber and was the main defendant in the case. Both defendants were unanimously acquitted by the jury.

View All Cases