Turing :- about bloody time

[timwilky]

Just read the news this morning and he has been given a royal pardon. Only 60 years too late.

A genius of his day, contributed massively to cracking enigma.

His crime to be gay, so chemically castrated, lost all his security clearance and died under very suspicious circumstances eating a cyanide laced apple.

About bloody time.

What about the thousands of others prosecuted and persecuted through this law? Where are their pardons?

[timwilky]

I agree, One high profile is a start.

Unfortunately at the time of his trial, I would doubt the court could even be told who he really was and what he had done.

Maybe in the future when a law is repealed, all those convicted of it should also be pardoned. I recall someone ending up in court fro refusing to give a DNA sample as the police caught up on early pre DNA convictions as their sex crime/conviction was to have had a homosexual relationship.

What does it matter who he really was, or what he had done, "good character" is not a defense. It was a crime (no matter how abhorrent that the legislation was to our current morals). I think it is a stain on this country's history that those laws were in place till 1969, but in place they were.

Its a nice idea to pardon those convicted of repealed laws, but think where it could go with automatic pardons for those convicted of a crime that has been repealed. Updating legislation would be a nightmare, as you would have to amend existing legislation rather then repeal and replace. Or in an extreme case, you'd get violent offenders with a lot of power/money getting the small section they were convicted on repealed and their conviction pardoned. Even if it was repealed for a day. This has been contemplated by this government in order to circumvent the human rights act in order to deport Abu Hamza.

Also I doubt that refusing to give a DNA sample was the whole story. If he had been found not guilty you cannot re-open the trial without fresh evidence. The police may have said that the new evidence is his DNA sample, but he cannot be asked to give that evidence until the case is re-opened.

[andrewsmith]

I agree its 60 years too late, but the court would have not even mentioned who he was and what he did in the war.

And about time for one of the smartest and most influential scientific brains that this country has ever produced

Originally Posted by ClunkintheUK

What about the thousands of others prosecuted and persecuted through this law? Where are their pardons?

Some of them are still alive.

If they pardon them they might start in on compensation.


At the end of the day their crime wasn't to be gay, it was in committing a homosexual act. The law was wrong but it was still the law and they were still in breach of it.

The crime was in getting caught?

Originally Posted by Bluefish

The crime was in getting caught?

Apply that to all crimes and see if you think it true.

[Balky001]

The real crime was destroying a man's life through warped Victorian morality and apathy to change the law from that period.

Whether Turing was a genius of his time or just an average bloke, his persecution is abhorrent and the excuse of 'it was the law at the time' is fallacious. I'm sure there aren't many today outside North Korean's military that supports execution for people search for food and excusing Turing's treatment then is on the same level.

Times change.

Might as well issue a blanket apology and pardon for anyone pre WW2.

After all they could all even be innocent.

Victorian and later morality was what it was and in the context of the time was not regarded as anything but normal.

Perhaps we should apologise for the execution of prisoners of war at the battle of agincourt next, or the dissolution of the monasteries.