Wearside Jack - Trial and Conviction

Trial and Conviction

Humble was tried at Leeds Crown Court on 9 January 2006, and initially pleaded not guilty. He admitted to being Wearside Jack on 23 February 2006, and on 20 March 2006, changed his plea to guilty on four counts of perverting the course of justice.

During the trial, his defence barristers reported he had attempted suicide on a number of occasions, including one occasion shortly after the tape was made public. The defence also claimed he had lived an "inadequate life", and had been driven by guilt to alcoholism. Despite this, Humble did not contact the police voluntarily to acknowledge his guilt, even when it was obvious his tapes and letters were diverting police resources away from the real Ripper. A BBC documentary broadcast on 27 March 2006 reported that Humble had telephoned the incident room and informed them that the tape was a hoax. Although key individuals in the investigation were convinced that this caller was the hoaxer, it was officially discounted. In addition, the US profiling expert Robert Ressler revealed in his book, "Whoever Fights Monsters", that he told the British police that the main tape was a hoax immediately when he heard it.

After hearing Humble's change of plea, the mother of one of the victims of the true Ripper expressed her belief that Humble should be punished, telling the BBC "I think it's started off as a hoax but he should have realised he was misdirecting the police and he was causing criminal damage to people." On 21 March 2006, Humble was sentenced to eight years in jail. In July 2006, he launched an appeal against his sentence, which was rejected in October of the same year.