 Seeley did not appear, remaining at Hammondsport in the United States; the embarrassment of the case led to his dismissal, but with no lasting financial implications.The nervous strain of the proceedings combined with the onerous commitments at Felixstowe had an adverse effect on Porte's already poor state of health, the circumstances making it very difficult to mount a proper defense; he was taken ill toward the end of the second hearing and remained for a period at the Russell Hotel in the advanced stages of chronic pulmonary tuberculosis; proceedings continued in his absence until the final hearing at the Old Bailey.The distinguished Casson, a retired civil servant and barrister living in Bedford Park, was 'persuaded’ to plead guilty so the trial could be brought to a swift conclusion and reprimanded by the sentencing judge, Henry McCardie.