High profile barrister and judge Constance Briscoe arrested by police
12 October 2012
A prominent barrister and recorder (or Britain's Top Black Woman Judge, © all newspapers) has been suspended from the judiciary after she was arrested at her home last weekend.

The reason for Constance Briscoe's arrest is shrouded in mystery. All that is known is that the part-time judge (and criminal barrister of 9-12 Bellyard) was arrested and questioned before being released on bail. Kent police have declined to confirm any details and will only say: "A 55-year-old woman was arrested on Saturday in Clapham, south London, interviewed by officers and bailed pending further inquiries".

But this week the Lord Chief Justice and the Lord Chancellor suspended Briscoe from the judiciary "pending the outcome of the police investigation into the allegations against her".

Briscoe in happier times

Briscoe meanwhile is tabloid heaven. She hit the headlines six years ago when she published her memoir "Ugly", in which she spoke about the abuse she suffered as a child (and for which her mother tried unsuccessfully to sue her). And this year, she found herself in the eye of another media storm after her partner, Anthony Arlidge QC, rather publicly left her to shack up with a woman 50 years his junior. Briscoe is also reported to have given evidence to the police in relation to the upcoming trial of politician Chris Huhne and his ex-wife Vicky Pryce, both accused of perverting the course of justice over a speeding offence.

But for now nothing is known of the substance of the allegations against her, bar a few journalists tweeting enigmatically about a huge story about to unfold. Watch this space.