• Photos
Husband of the late nurse Jacintha Saldanha, Benedict Barboza arrives at the Houses of Parliament

Husband of the late nurse Jacintha Saldanha, Benedict Barboza arrives at the Houses of Parliament for a meeting with a British Member of Parliament about Jacintha Saldanha's death Monday Dec, 10, 2012. (AP Photo/Anthony Devlin/PA)

In this image recorded Monday, Dec. 10, 2012 Australian radio DJs Michael Christian, left, and Mel Greig appear. (AP Photo/Channel Nine)

In this image recorded Monday, Dec. 10, 2012 Australian radio DJs Michael Christian, left, and Mel Greig appear. (AP Photo/Channel Nine)

Britain's Prince William stand next to his wife Kate, Duchess of Cambridge as she leaves the King Edward VII hospital in central London,

Britain's Prince William stand next to his wife Kate, Duchess of Cambridge as she leaves the King Edward VII hospital in central London, Thursday, Dec. 6, 2012. (AP Photo/Alastair Grant)

  • More Featured Content
FBI: Man fatally shot in Boston bombing probe
FBI: Man fatally shot in Boston probe

DEVELOPING: The FBI says a man being questioned by …

Okla. residents come home to pick up the pieces
Oklahoma residents pick up the pieces

As state and federal officials work to set up disaster recovery…

The 50th Super Bowl goes to San Francisco Bay Area
50th Super Bowl goes to San Francisco

The 50th Super Bowl will be held in the San Francisco Bay Area …

Police release photos from Tucson shooting rampage
Photos released from Tucson shooting

Authorities on Tuesday released nearly 600 photos that …

IRS chief knew tea party groups targeted in 2012
IRS chief knew of 2012 targeting

The former head of the Internal Revenue Service said he first …

Advertisement

UK: No charges for Australian royal hoax DJs

No evidence to support a charge of manslaughter

Updated: Friday, 01 Feb 2013, 8:35 AM EST
Published : Friday, 01 Feb 2013, 7:08 AM EST

LONDON (AP) — British prosecutors said Friday they will not press charges against two Australian DJs over the royal hoax call that preceded a nurse's suicide.

Two Australian DJs impersonated Queen Elizabeth II and her son, Prince Charles, as they phoned London's King Edward VII hospital in December to ask about the condition of the Duchess of Cambridge, formerly Kate Middleton, who had been hospitalized for treatment of acute morning sickness stemming from her pregnancy.

Nurse Jacintha Saldanha, who put the call through to a colleague who in turn described the details of Kate's condition, was found hanged in her room three days after the prank was broadcast across the world.

Prosecutors on Friday said there was no evidence to support a charge of manslaughter, and despite "some evidence" to warrant further investigation of offenses under Britain's Data Protection Act and Malicious Communications Act, any potential prosecution would not be in the public interest.

The Crown Prosecution Service said that decision was taken because it isn't possible to extradite from Australia for those potential offenses, and because "however misguided, the telephone call was intended as a harmless prank."

DJs Michael Christian and Mel Greig —apologized after Saldanha's death in emotional interviews on Australian television, saying they never expected their call would be put through.

The radio show behind the call, the "Hot 30" program, was taken off air following Saldanha's death and later canceled.

  • Comments
With WDTN.com's new commenting system you don't need to register. You can login with an existing Facebook, Yahoo!, Google, or Twitter account and more.
 

blog comments powered by Disqus

News Link Icon See the latest county jail bookings»

Advertisement
  • Mugshot Gallery

Mugshot Gallery

The following people have recently been booked into Jail. They may not have been convicted of the crimes they are charged with and are innocent until proven guilty.

See gallery »

Advertisement

Advertisement