People with mental illness in criminal justice system failed ‘at every stage’ – The Independent

‘The criminal justice system is “failing” people with a mental illness “at every stage”, a major report has found has found.’

Full Story

The Independent, 17h November 2021

Source: www.independent.co.uk

Rehabilitation and retribution: In re JR123’s application – UK Human Rights Blog

‘What happens when someone is convicted of a criminal offence and is given a custodial sentence? Sometimes, the individual will serve at least part of their sentence in prison and the remainder on licence. But, what happens after they’ve served the totality of their sentence?’

Full Story

UK Human Rights Blog, 12rh November 2021

Source: ukhumanrightsblog.com

Lord Chief Justice warns government over ‘value of the rule of law’ in courts funding plea – The Independent

“In his annual report, published on Friday [5th November], Lord Burnett of Maldon warned that the only way to cut record waiting times was to run crown courts at full capacity for the ‘foreseeable future’.”

Full Story

The Independent, 5th November 2021

Source: www.independent.co.uk

Guest blog: “Perhaps now it is time for more direct action” at the criminal Bar – Bar Council

Posted November 5th, 2021 in barristers, budgets, criminal justice, news, pupillage, statistics by michael

“My Chambers took part in this year’s Bar Council Pupillage Fair, which took place in the wake of reports highlighting the fact that the Criminal Bar is haemorrhaging members, with 11% of juniors reportedly having left criminal practice in the three years leading up to the Covid pandemic. There are, as yet, no statistics for falling retention rates during and as a result of the pandemic itself. No doubt they will represent a clear measure of the worsening state of our Criminal Justice System [CJS].”

Full Story

Bar Council, 4th November 2021

Source: www.barcouncil.org.uk

The Court of Protection and Criminal Law – UK Human Rights Blog

‘Re C [2021] EWCA Civ 1527. This is an appeal from Hayden J’s judgment in Re C [2021] EWCOP 25. The appeal was allowed on the basis that care workers making arrangements to secure the services of a sex worker for C would place the care workers in peril of committing an offence contrary to section 39 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003 (“SOA”).’

Full Story

UK Human Rights Blog, 30th October 2021

Source: ukhumanrightsblog.com

“A step in the right direction” – legal leaders seek positives from Budget – Legal Futures

‘Legal leaders hailed funding for the justice system announced in yesterday’s Budget as “a step in the right direction”, even though it will not even return the Crown Court backlog to pre-Covid levels.’

Full Story

Legal Futures, 28th October 2021

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

Research briefing: Police powers: an introduction – House of Commons Library

Posted October 25th, 2021 in crime prevention, criminal justice, investigatory powers, news, parliament, police by sally

‘This commons library briefing paper introduces a series on police powers.’

Full Story

House of Commons Library, 21st October 2021

Source: commonslibrary.parliament.uk

Jailing of most mothers for non-violent crimes should stop, says report – The Guardian

‘The imprisonment of many mothers serving sentences for non-violent and relatively minor crimes should be ended and community women’s centres used instead, according to research that has found separation can increase the risk of children being exploited and cost hundreds of thousands of pounds for just a single case.’

Full Story

The Guardian, 25th October 2021

Source: www.theguardian.com

England and Wales court backlog crisis ‘to go on for several years’ – The Guardian

‘The backlog of cases in criminal courts in England and Wales is likely to be a pervasive issue for several years, severely affecting victims, witnesses and defendants, the National Audit Office has said.’

Full Story

The Guardian, 22nd October 2021

Source: www.theguardian.com

Iraq war: Abuse claims against soldiers close with no prosecutions – BBC News

‘All remaining investigations into allegations of abuse by British soldiers in Iraq have now finished without any prosecutions being brought.’

Full Story

BBC News, 20th October 2021

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Long delay for hundreds of rape cases, says report – BBC News

‘The number of rape and sexual assault victims who have waited more than a year for their trial to go through the courts has soared, a report shows.’

Full Story

BBC News, 22nd October 2021

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Huge rise in domestic abuse cases being dropped in England and Wales – BBC News

Posted October 15th, 2021 in criminal justice, domestic violence, news, prosecutions, statistics, time limits, women by sally

‘Victims of alleged domestic abuse are seeing their cases dropped at a rapidly increasing rate, according to data obtained by the BBC.’

Full Story

BBC News, 15th October 2021

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Domestic violence victim says UK justice system is ‘like the abuse’ – BBC News

‘A traumatised domestic abuse victim has said her experience of the justice system was so bad it was “like the abuse has continued”.’

Full Story

BBC News, 10th October 2021

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Tens of thousands more criminals to be tagged to cut crime and protect victims – Ministry of Justice

‘Almost 26,000 extra offenders will be tagged over the next 3 years under an ambitious £180 million plan to expand the use of electronic monitoring to cut crime.’

Full Story

Ministry of Justice, 5th October 2021

Source: www.gov.uk

Gender pay gap at Bar has widened over past 20 years – Legal Futures

‘The income gap between male and female barristers has increased over the last 20 years, new Bar Council figures have shown.’

Full Story

Legal Futures, 4th October 2021

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

Jail terms of 20+ years ‘quadruple’ in England and Wales over past decade – The Guardian

‘The number of people sentenced to more than 20 years in prison has quadrupled over the last decade, figures have shown. Given the increase in average tariff lengths handed down by courts, this figure is expected to continue to rise substantially over coming years.’

Full Story

The Guardian, 3rd October 2021

Source: www.theguardian.com

More rape trials to allow pre-recorded evidence – Law Society’s Gazette

‘Victims of alleged sexual violence in London and the north east will be spared live cross-examination from today, as part of a pilot scheme to make trials less traumatic for complainants.’

Full Story

Law Society's Gazette, 30th September 2021

Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk

Fear of more baby deaths as ministers stand firm on jailing pregnant women – The Guardian

‘Experts have warned that more babies could die in prison owing to the government’s expansion of female prison places and ministers’ refusal to grant multiple requests to end the incarceration of pregnant women.’

Full Story

The Guardian, 23rd September 2021

Source: www.theguardian.com

Violence against women and girls should be treated with same priority as terrorism, says watchdog – The Independent

‘“Radical” change is needed to stop an epidemic of violence against women and girls in Britain, a watchdog has found.
An inspection sparked by the killing of Sarah Everard, who was kidnapped, raped and murdered by a serving police officer, said police must prioritise protecting women as highly as counter-terrorism.’

Full Story

The Independent, 17th September 2021

Source: www.independent.co.uk

Watchdog finds ‘staggering variation’ in police use of Clare’s Law – The Guardian

Posted September 17th, 2021 in criminal justice, domestic violence, news, ombudsmen, police, statistics, violence, women by sally

‘Clare’s Law, a scheme designed to protect unsuspecting women from new partners with a history of violence, is not being used properly by police forces, putting some women at risk of harm, a policing watchdog has warned.’

Full Story

The Guardian, 17th September 2021

Source: www.theguardian.com