Monday, 03 February 2020 10:33
Fall in police referrals
Police are referring fewer rape cases to the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), new figures reveal amid accusations that thousands of victims are being denied justice.
Friday, 31 January 2020 10:19
Assisted dying
A terminally ill man has lost his appeal for a judicial review on assisted dying. Phil Newby, who has motor neurone disease, had asked the courts to undertake a ‘detailed examination of the evidence’ to determine whether the ban on assisted dying was compatible with his human rights. The Court of Appeal refused permission for a judicial review. As in previous cases the court decided that a change in the law was a matter for parliament. Newby is considering an appeal to the European Court of Human Rights.
Thursday, 30 January 2020 09:47
CPS back track
Woman who was told man that filmed her naked without consent could not face charges wins fight for justice. A woman who was told the man who filmed her naked without her consent could not face charges has won a five-year fight for justice as the Crown Prosecution Service said it would look at the case again.
Wednesday, 29 January 2020 10:54
Extinction Rebellion activists cleared
A group of Extinction Rebellion (XR) protestors who brought City of London Airport to a standstill were given £280 to cover travel costs to court, after their case collapsed because a key police witness is on holiday.
Tuesday, 28 January 2020 10:54
Wrongfully imprisoned.....
A man who was wrongfully arrested and sent to prison while awaiting trial has been given £100,000 in compensation. Gary Webb, from Gatehouse of Fleet in Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland, spent one night in police custody and three nights in prison in 2015. The 60-year-old was later released after police officers realised they had arrested the wrong man - but he said that his life had been 'trashed' by the experience. Mr Webb, who has no criminal convictions, was arrested at his home by officers who had a warrant for a different person. It is not clear what the charge was.
Monday, 27 January 2020 10:10
Increase in violence by women?......
Crimeline reports upon the Freedom of Information data showing that the number of attacks on family members committed by women have risen twice as fast as those committed by men.
Friday, 24 January 2020 10:16
Dating fingerprints
Police forensics could be able to DATE fingerprints for the first time after scientists develop a method for measuring how chemicals in the residues degrade over time.
Wednesday, 22 January 2020 10:06
Campaigners oppose "rough sex" defence
Campaigners say men are increasingly using the "rough sex" defence to try to get away with murdering women. They want the law changed to prevent such a defence and have the support of two MPs. But what difference would it make?
Monday, 20 January 2020 16:31
Stalking prevention order
New Home Office measures to tackle the growing crime of stalking risk becoming a “retrograde” step that campaigners warn could prompt an increase in murders. The stalking protection orders, unveiled today, aim to block perpetrators from approaching their victims and allow courts in England and Wales to move quicker to ban stalkers from contacting or visiting victims.
Wednesday, 15 January 2020 09:52
Justice delayed
The legal maxim “justice delayed is justice denied” can be traced to Magna Carta and applies both to victims and the accused. For the former, to wait an inordinate time to obtain redress or to secure the prosecution of someone who has done them a wrong is frustrating. For someone accused of a crime, a lengthy hiatus can be disproportionately disruptive to their lives if they are eventually found innocent.Yet the length of time between an offender’s arrest and trial has risen by one third over the past decade and now averages close to three years in some parts of…
Tuesday, 14 January 2020 10:26
Police refuse to apologise
Police have refused to apologise to a man wrongly jailed for 25 years because officers lied at his trial, even after the now-retired appeal court judge who quashed the conviction told the Guardian that the force should say sorry.
Monday, 13 January 2020 11:50
Disclosure issues
The Crown Prosecution Service’s disclosure of evidence is still sub-standard despite ‘early signs of improvement’, inspectors report today .HM Crown Prosecution Service Inspectorate (HMCPSI), a watchdog for the CPS and the Serious Fraud Office, assessed how well the CPS is complying with its duty to disclose unused material (i.e evidence gathered but not replied upon by the prosecution).
Friday, 10 January 2020 09:55
Use of video links
Live video link technology has long been used to afford valuable protection to vulnerable witnesses giving evidence during criminal trials in England and Wales. Against the current backdrop of falling budgets, HMCTS staffing cuts and widespread court closures, it is perhaps unsurprising that such technology is also increasingly being used to replace face-to-face contact with defendants writes Matt O’Brien for the Gazette.
Thursday, 09 January 2020 10:19
Distressed witnesses
More than a third of jurors are unsure if rape victims who display little emotion in the witness box can have been sexually assaulted despite psychological research disproving it, according to the first official investigation into juries’ belief in rape “myths.”
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