Pat Owen, a former sub postmistress who has since handed away, was convicted of stealing in 1998 primarily based on proof from laptop software program.
The system, generally known as Seize, was utilized in as much as 2,500 branches within the Nineties, earlier than the notorious Horizon system was launched.
A whole bunch of sub-postmasters had been wrongfully convicted between 1999 and 2015 as a part of the Horizon scandal.
That report, commissioned by the solicitors appearing for Mrs Owen in 1998, was served on the Publish Workplace and will by no means have been seen by the jury in her case.
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2:48
‘All we would like is her title cleared’
Ms Owen was given a suspended jail sentence and fought to clear her title subsequently – however died in 2003.
Extra on Publish Workplace Scandal
Her case was referred by the Felony Instances Assessment Fee (CCRC) to the Court docket of Enchantment in October.
The Publish Workplace had till 5 December to reply to papers put ahead by Mrs Owen’s defence staff however they’ve now requested for an extension till 30 January.
Ms Owen’s daughter, Juliet Shardlow, described the household’s struggling on the lengthening wait.
“I need to emphasise the profound impact the ongoing delay is having on our family,” she stated.
“The continual uncertainty solely compounds our heartache, stress, and nervousness.
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Alan Bates: New redress scheme ‘half-baked’
“It has become the last thing I think about before I go to sleep and the first thing when I wake up.
“Now we have waited 27 years for justice, and this extra wait feels unending.”
Ms Owen’s case is the first time a conviction based on Capture has reached the Court of Appeal since the scandal was exposed.
Lawyers have said that if Ms Owen is exonerated posthumously, it may “pace up” the handling of others.
The CCRC is also continuing to investigate around 30 other “pre-Horizon” convictions.
A Post Office spokesperson said: “Now we have sought an extension of time to completely think about and reply to the CCRC’s Assertion of Causes in Ms Owen’s case.
“We deeply remorse the influence our request for additional time may have on Ms Owen’s household.
“We have a duty to carefully consider the evidence presented in the Statement of Reasons submitted by the CCRC and do everything we can to fully assist the Court when it considers this conviction.”
In the meantime, the first-ever redress scheme for victims of the Publish Workplace Seize IT scandal was launched this autumn.
The Seize Redress Scheme will present funds of as much as £300,000, and extra in “exceptional” instances, to former postmasters who suffered monetary losses.
