This is an extract from an article that appeared in The Independent on the 16th May 2013. Criminal suspects who have been arrested should not normally be named until they are charged, the Home Secretary has said. In a letter to the recently formed professional standards body, the College of Policing, Theresa May said she [...]
Home Secretary say criminal suspects who have been arrested should not normally be named until they are charged
May 17, 2013 from Leave a Comment
Article in The Times on the dangers of generating false claims of abuse
May 16, 2013 from Leave a Comment
There is an excellent article in the Times (subscription required) dated 10th May 2013 concerning the potential for false claims of abuse being made by those who had an association with Jimmy Saville (or any other celebrity or person). Well Worth reading.
After Savile: policing as entertainment. Article by Frank Furedi
May 15, 2013 from Leave a Comment
Our attention has been drawn to a challenging article by Frank Furedi published on Spike Online here It begins … After Savile: policing as entertainment Operation Yewtree isn’t about solving crime – it’s more like a reality TV format where the police’s aim is to thrill the paedo-fearing public. When, 50 years from now, historians look back [...]
Comment on Operation Pallial
May 15, 2013 from Leave a Comment
This blog by by Anna Racoon has recently been brought to our attention. It begins… When mollusca trawl their glutinous way across our landscape, they have the evolutionary advantage of a third eye to spot potential predators. It’s called the pallial eye. I thought I’d tell you something interesting pertaining to ‘Pallial’ before you all dropped dead from the excitement. The North Wales Police [...]
Three in four believe those accused of sexual assaults should be granted anonymity
May 8, 2013 from Leave a Comment
This article by Andrew Grice has been extracted from the Independent website here A poll by The Independent finds strong public support for the controversial view that suspects in sex cases should enjoy the same right to anonymity as defendants Three out of four people believe that people accused of rape and other sexual assaults should [...]
Three in four believe those accused of sexual assaults should be granted anonymity.
May 2, 2013 from Leave a Comment
In an exclusive a poll in the The Independent (2nd May 2013) finds strong public support for the controversial view that suspects in sex cases should enjoy the same right to anonymity as defendants. Three out of four people believe that people accused of rape and other sexual assaults should have their identities protected until they [...]
Two Justice Gap articles – both well worth reading.
April 15, 2013 from Leave a Comment
There are two excellent articles on the Justice Gap website, one written by Paul May about the demonisation of hospital nurses and the other by David Rose concerning the thorny topic of the relationship between defence law and journalists. Both well worth reading. Sketch by Isobel Williams In (Nurses) We Trust (?) Paul May kicks off [...]
Serious consideration to be given to keeping the names of suspects confidential until they are charged
April 9, 2013 from Leave a Comment
The Daily Telegraph report (here) that serious consideration is being given to keeping the names of suspects confidential until they are charged. Britain’s police chiefs are considering proposals that would mean names were only released once someone has been charged with an offence. The plans follow recommendations made by Lord Justice Leveson in his report [...]
Local Safeguarding Children Boards in England given power to request any person or body to supply relevant information
April 4, 2013 from Leave a Comment
The Children, Schools and Families Act 2010 (Commencement No. 3) Order 2013 has now been enacted. This amends Section 8 of the Act inserts by inserting Section 14B into the Children Act 2004(b) which gives Local Safeguarding Children Boards in England the power to request any person or body to supply such information as is specified in [...]
David Aaronovitch says lets be careful in our assessment of victims of abuse and the falsely accused.
April 3, 2013 from Leave a Comment
There is an interesting article in The Times (March 21 2013) written by David Aaronovitch in which he attempts to balance out the often conflicting and competing claims of an imaginary person who was abused by a minor celebrity, and the claims of an imaginary innocent man who has been in the public eye. Imagine you are [...]
Lord Chief Justice calls for research into effects on children of giving evidence in abuse cases
April 3, 2013 from Leave a Comment
According to an article in the Guardian by Owen Bowcott, legal affairs correspondent, published on the 20th March, Lord Judge, the Lord Chief Justice calls for research into effects on children of giving evidence in abuse cases. Research should be carried out into the long-term affects on those who give evidence about sexual abuse when they [...]
Couple falsely accused of child abuse win damages from Haringey council
March 18, 2013 from Leave a Comment
This item appeared on the Guardian website on the 14th March 2012. Couple falsely accused of child abuse win damages from Haringey council Pair plunged into ‘nightmare’ after anonymous tipoff about treatment of daughter are awarded £2,000 damages in high court Haringey civic centre in Wood Green, north London. The council mishandled its investigation, giving [...]
New CPS report shows that while false allegations must be taken seriously they are relatively rare and are often complex cases
March 13, 2013 from Leave a Comment
Writing in the Guardian (here) Keir Starmer QC, director of public prosecutions and head of the Crown Prosecution Service. says .. The Crown Prosecution Service has come a long way in dealing with cases involving violence against women and girls. In the last year (2011-12) we have seen the conviction rate rise to 73%, delivering the [...]
FACT contributes to Radio 5 Live debate
March 12, 2013 from Leave a Comment
FACT members might like to hear FACT’s contribution to the Radio 5 Live perspective on the DPP comments regarding the investigation of sexual offences. You can access here (for a short while) http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b01r186b Fast Forward to 2:23:00
Prosecutor demands overhaul of sexual abuse investigations
March 12, 2013 from Leave a Comment
This article first appeared in the Guardian (here) on 6th March. Keir Starmer warns justice system cannot afford ‘another Savile moment’ and announces panel to review historic complaints Sweeping changes to the way alleged sex offenders in England and Wales are investigated must be introduced in the wake of the Jimmy Savile scandal and other child exploitation [...]
Rape suspects ‘should not be named’
February 18, 2013 from Leave a Comment
The Chairman of the Bar Council says Rape suspects ‘should not be named’ however senior criminal barrister says the plan would curb stigma of false accusations but campaigners fear it will lead to fewer convictions Further information on this story can be found Rape suspects ’should not be named’ – The Guardian BBC News – Sex [...]
The Independent Police Complaints Commission to be given more staff to deal with complains against the Police.
February 18, 2013 from Leave a Comment
The Home Office have issued a Press release stating that the Independent Police Complaints Commission is to be expanded to deal with all serious complaints against the police, the Home Secretary announced today. The move was revealed as part of series of measures designed to ensure the highest standards of integrity in policing. In addition to the expansion [...]
Mid Staffs report: NHS culture was the culprit
February 11, 2013 from Leave a Comment
This extract has been taken from the The Guardian on 6th February 2013. The scale of Robert Francis’s report cannot be overestimated – and neither can the magnitude of cultural change it calls for In answering the question of why hundreds of patients died needlessly at the Mid Staffordshire trust in the years between 2005 [...]
Final Report Of The Independent Inquiry Into Care Provided By Mid Staffordshire NHS Foundation Trust Published
February 6, 2013 from Leave a Comment
The final report into the care provided by Mid Staffordshire NHS Foundation Trust was published today. The Inquiry Chairman, Robert Francis QC, concluded that patients were routinely neglected by a Trust that was preoccupied with cost cutting, targets and processes and which lost sight of its fundamental responsibility to provide safe care. Download Inquiry Report [...]
Treating every allegation against Jimmy Savile as a ‘fact’ undermines justice
January 15, 2013 from 1 Comment
For a different slant on the Jimmy Saville Affair see the article written by Charles More published in the Daily Telegraph which is reproduced in full below The lead headline on the BBC website yesterday said: “Jimmy Savile scandal: Report reveals extent of abuse”. Well, I have read the whole of the report, and I [...]
Jimmy Saville: A Report for the Director of Public Prosecutions by Alison Levitt Q.C.
January 13, 2013 from Leave a Comment
Jimmy Saville: A Report for the Director of Public Prosecutions by Alison Levitt Q.C. Extracted below is the the reports introductory summary and the conclusion. For a full understanding of the issues you should read the whole report (here) Introductory Summary This case concerns four allegations that the late Jimmy Savile indecently assaulted girls and [...]
Jimmy Saville Scandal: How will affect future abuse cases?
January 12, 2013 from Leave a Comment
There is an interesting article on the BBC website which discusses how future cases of [alleged] child abuse might be handled by the police and prosecuting authorities. Jimmy Savile’s ability to commit hundreds of serious sexual offences inside public institutions, “hiding in plain sight” as Friday’s police and NSPCC report (here) on his crimes puts [...]
Court of appeal quashes convictions of five men for murder
January 10, 2013 from Leave a Comment
This is an extract of an item which appears on the Guardian website on 8th Jan 2013 The court of appeal has quashed the murder convictions of five men convicted of a gangland killing after hearing of failures to reveal potentially crucial evidence to the defence. The five men were serving life sentences totalling a minimum of [...]
Criminal defence lawyers against the media – a lost battle
January 7, 2013 from Leave a Comment
There is a very interesting and thought provoking article by Joseph Kotrie-Monson, in the January Inside Time newspaper (here) in which he argues that Press reporting of criminal cases has become massively biased and anti-defendant in recent years and, in some instances, makes it very difficult to obtain a fair trial. In the article Joseph Kotrie-Monson of Mary Monson Solicitors [...]
Justice Gap publish their on-line Christmas Newsletter
December 21, 2012 from Leave a Comment
The Justice Gap have published their on-line Christmas Newsletter. Among the stories on www.thejusticegap.com this month, are: 1. A tribute to Tony Stock who died recently and was regarded as subject of one of the most outrageous miscarriages of justice of modern times: You can read The Curious Case of Tony Stock HERE. Earlier this week the Labour MP Barry Sheerman [...]