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Robin Curnow: 'Sensational end to sensational trial'
(CNN) -- The case against a former butler charged with stealing from the estate of Princess Diana was unexpectedly thrown out of court Friday. CNN correspondent Robin Curnow and Joshua Rozenberg, legal editor of The Daily Telegraph, spoke to CNN anchor Paula Zahn from London. CURNOW: Again, what a sensational end to such a sensational trial. And the woman who saved Paul Burrell, Princess Diana's former butler, from going to jail, perhaps Queen Elizabeth II, came out with some unbelievable evidence that she had ... a conversation with Mr. Burrell soon after Diana's death, and in the end caused the collapse of this trial ... saying she knew that he had kept certain papers for safekeeping. The question everybody is asking is, why is this information only coming to light now? Why did the queen only decide to let us know and the court know that she had -- that she knew -- or that she had spoken to Burrell? ROZENBERG: The answer is, it was a series of mistakes. I don't think it was a conspiracy theory. The queen had a conversation with her husband, Prince Phillip, the son, the Prince of Wales, last Friday. The queen mentioned to Prince Charles, her son, that she had had this conversation, and he had told her that he had taken certain papers away. The Prince of Wales realized this was important information, and the Prince of Wales then passed it on to the authorities. The queen wasn't here when the trial opened, she was in Canada, so she would not have realized from the press reports how important it was that the prosecution in the case was based on the fact that Paul Burrell had not told anybody he had taken property of any sort away from the princess. CURNOW: But still, The timing (is) rather suspicious, perhaps because Paul Burrell was about to take the stand. We've heard some very interesting gossip, tidbits. The British public and tabloids have been getting information out of this trial about very private things in the royal family. The fact that the queen came out with this information just as the defense is about to take their argument further is rather interesting, isn't it? ROZENBERG: It's very convenient for a lot of people, and a lot of people do smell a rat. But we are told that the queen only realized the importance of this information when she spoke to the prince last Friday. The trial was halted earlier this week for lots of discussions behind the scenes. I don't think anybody emerges from this very well. I don't think the police emerge from it very well because they did not investigate what the queen and Paul Burrell had said to one another, even though he had told them he had spoken to the queen, and certainly the defense lawyers thought if this case had gone all the way, Paul Burrell would have been found not guilty. CURNOW: Really? Fascinating. This is going to keep the British public talking for days. Already, ... hundreds of journalists have been covering the spectacular end of this trial here, at Britain's central criminal court, the Old Bailey. So that's wrapping up a very, very interesting time and (an) in-depth look into the goings on (of) royal family behind the closed doors of the palaces. It will be very interesting to see what else the media comes up with and lawyers talk about in the next few days. ZAHN: Robin Curnow and Joshua Rozenberg, thank you for both of your joining us this morning.
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