Essex: CPS lawyer takes part in Olympic opening ceremony

31/07/2012

An Essex based senior lawyer for the Crown Prosecution Service had the opportunity of a lifetime fulfilled when she took part in the London 2012 opening ceremony.

 

 

Olivia Gooding, a District Crown Prosecutor, who heads the North West team in the CPS Chelmsford office, was lucky enough to be on stage on Friday night at the Olympic park.

She was the placard bearer for the Democratic Republic of the Congo team.

This amazing opportunity had been prefaced with a two-stage audition which was held last autumn and then the first details of the undisclosed performance were known to Olivia in June 2012 when she took part in the first rehearsal.

Olivia said: "It was all very top secret, I was only provided with very brief details such as rehearsal times and venues and I didnt find out what my role would be until the first rehearsal."

She added: "I was absolutely thrilled to be selected, its a once in a lifetime opportunity to be part of a global event and definitely something I will remember for the rest of my life. It was an amazing and magical experience, the noise of the crowd, the atmosphere, it was all breathtaking and something I am so glad I could be a part of."

Olivia has a dual role when it comes to the Olympics; she has been involved in the opening ceremony and will also be involved in the closing ceremony on August 13, 2012.

At work she is acting as the Olympic co-ordinator for any cases relating to the games for the whole of the East of England Area, which comprises Essex, Suffolk, Norfolk and Cambridgeshire.

She said: "At present we havent had any specific cases related to the Olympics here. But lawyers across the area are in communication every day in case there are any incidents that have occurred. However there is minimal disruption to daily working and this certainly wont be to the detriment of other cases, as our teams are working as normal with their regular caseload."

The Crown Prosecution Service has defined Olympic offences as any offence committed between May 1 and September 30, 2012 that are stated by any court to be directly connected to the 2012 Olympic or Paralympic Games.

Olivia added: "Directly connected to the Games means offences committed at any Olympic site or venue, and we have some of these in Essex, such as Hadleigh for the mountain biking, so it is important we have plans in place so that cases can be dealt with as swiftly as possible. However there is by no means any suggestion that there will be a rise in crime in Essex or the East of England, but if there are issues we are ready and prepared to deal with them."