Addition of subreddit Rule #7

With Mark McDonald having announced that the contents of today's press conference were part of an application submitted yesterday to the CCRC, the moderation team has added a subreddit rule to begin to address how these claims may be discussed on the subreddit. Rule 7 reads as follows:

Contents of appeals are not factual until tested and verified by a court

Formal appeals and applications to the CCRC may be discussed on their merits, and weighed against the evidence already in record. However, the contents of such applications are not considered factual unless and until verified by the court.

Example:

Letby's appeal alleges that Child O's liver was perforated by a cannula inserted by Dr. Brearey, leading to Child O's death - ok

Dr. Brearey inserted a cannula that perforated Child O's liver and led to his death - not ok

This is obviously a sister rule to rule 3, and makes clear the position that is already in place - the verdicts establish the current legal reality, which *IS* the established reality until a credible appeal has been considered by the court.

This subreddit is happy and free to discuss the merits (or lack thereof) of this application, however it is important to remember that something is not factual just because it is in an appeal application. Comments that treat applications made on her behalf as representations of fact will be removed, and repeated violations may lead to a ban.

To be very clear on the long-held position of this subreddit - we believe the formal legal process fairly weighs the vast majority of criminal accusations brought before it, and has measures in place to correct errors that occur. We support every single part of this process, and we respect the conclusions that it reaches - regardless of our personal feelings on the matter.