Mahmood to review Sentencing Council’s powers amid ‘two-tier’ justice row – The Guardian

‘Shabana Mahmood has ordered a review of the powers of the independent body that draws up judges’ sentencing guidelines in England and Wales following claims that new rules discriminate against white men.’

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The Guardian, 6th March 2025

Source: www.theguardian.com

‘They suffer in silence’: case of serial rapist Zhenhao Zou highlights barriers to justice for east Asian women in UK – The Guardian

‘When asked if she was surprised that most of the victims of Zhenhao Zou, who could be one of Britain’s worst serial rapists, remained unknown to authorities, Viny Poon, who has spent the past decade supporting east Asian women in the UK, simply said: “No.” Zou, a 28-year-old PhD student, was convicted on Wednesday of drugging and raping 10 women in London and China. After recovering videos of Zou attacking a further 50 women, police have said this could be one of the worst cases of sexual violence in modern Britain. All of Zou’s victims are thought to be of Chinese heritage.’

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The Guardian, 6th March 2025

Source: www.theguardian.com

Pregnant offenders in England and Wales could be spared jail under new guidelines – The Guardian

‘Pregnant women should not be sent to jail unless it is “unavoidable”, according to new sentencing guidelines.’

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The Guardian, 5th March 2025

Source: www.theguardian.com

Ministers criticise ‘two-tier’ sentencing changes in England and Wales – The Guardian

‘Ministers have criticised plans to make the ethnic background of offenders a greater factor in determining whether to jail them, saying they amounted to a “two-tier system” of justice.’

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The Guardian, 6th March 2025

Source: www.theguardian.com

Law Commission opens a further consultation in light of the contempt issues that arose after the Southport murders. – Law Commission

‘Since the guilty pleas by Axel Rudakubana, there has been a renewed and acute focus on liability for contempt of court, and specifically on what can be said after a suspect has been arrested. The Law Commission has today (3 March) published a brief supplementary consultation paper so that people have an opportunity to let us know their views about the law in light of those events.’

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Law Commission, 3rd March 2025

Source: lawcom.gov.uk

Ban pornography depicting strangulation, review urges UK ministers – The Guardian

‘Pornography depicting strangulation should be made illegal along with other kinds of “legal but harmful” sexual material, according to an independent government review.’

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The Guardian, 27th February 2025

Source: www.theguardian.com

Law Commission proposes reforms on how possible miscarriages of justice are handled – The Guardian

‘More potential wrongful convictions could be sent back to the appeal court under proposals to change the way the miscarriages of justice watchdog decides cases.’

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The Guardian, 27th February 2025

Source: www.theguardian.com

Joint enterprise law reform will help solve UK justice system crisis, say experts – The Guardian

‘Campaigners give evidence on principle under which black people are 16 times more likely to be prosecuted than white people.’

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The Guardian, 23rd February 2025

Source: www.theguardian.com

Police to be allowed to search properties without warrant for stolen phones in England and Wales – The Guardian

‘Police will be able to search properties without a warrant for stolen phones or other electronically geotagged items under the government’s crime and policing bill.’

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The Guardian, 25th February 2025

Source: www.theguardian.com

Women’s Justice Board begins plans to send fewer women to prison – Ministry of Justice

Posted February 24th, 2025 in crime prevention, criminal justice, imprisonment, news, prisons, women by sally

‘Cutting crime and reducing the number of vulnerable women being sent to prison is top of the agenda at the first meeting of the Women’s Justice Board.’

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Ministry of Justice, 21st February 2025

Source: www.gov.uk

Criminals caught with ‘signal jammers’ used in car thefts to face five years in prison – The Independent

Posted February 24th, 2025 in bills, burden of proof, criminal justice, imprisonment, news, road traffic, theft by sally

‘Criminals caught with “signal jammers” will face up to five years in prison under new laws to crack down on gadgets used to steal cars.’

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The Independent, 23rd February 2025

Source: www.independent.co.uk

Landmark reform: no time limit for Child Sexual Abuse claims – Kingsley Napley Medical Negligence and Personal Injury Blog

‘Earlier this month, the Government announced landmark reform to child sexual abuse personal injury claims. In legislation expected to be put before parliament next year, the 3-year time limit to bring such claims, which begins to run from a Claimant’s 18th birthday, will be abolished. The burden of proof on determining whether there can be a fair hearing will also shift, from the Claimant to the Defendant.’

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Kingsley Napley Medical Negligence and Personal Injury Blog, 20th February 2025

Source: www.kingsleynapley.co.uk

Pilot of domestic abuse experts helping in 999 call rooms begins in England – The Guardian

Posted February 21st, 2025 in crime prevention, criminal justice, domestic violence, murder, news, pilot schemes by sally

‘Domestic abuse specialists embedded in control rooms receiving 999 emergency calls will help “create force-wide cultural change”, said Jess Phillips as the first phase of “Raneem’s law” was rolled out across England.’

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The Guardian, 21st February 2025

Source: www.theguardian.com

UK use of predictive policing is racist and should be banned, says Amnesty – The Guardian

‘British policing’s use of algorithms and data to predict where crime will happen is racist and picks on the poor, a report from Amnesty International says.’

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The Guardian, 19th February 2025

Source: www.theguardian.com

‘Venomous’ attacks on attorney general undermining rule of law, say UK lawyers – The Guardian

Posted February 19th, 2025 in attorney general, barristers, criminal justice, legal profession, news, rule of law by sally

‘Senior lawyers have condemned the “venomous” and “deeply personal” attacks on the attorney general, Richard Hermer, saying they were causing “immense and untold damage” to society and the rule of law.’

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The Guardian, 18th February 2025

Source: www.theguardian.com

Police did not properly probe killer’s assaults before attacks, report says – The Independent

‘Police failed to properly investigate an assault on warehouse workers by Nottingham killer Valdo Calocane which could have stopped his murder spree a month later, a report by the police watchdog has found.’

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The Independent, 19th February 2025

Source: www.independent.co.uk

Devon man jailed for sending ‘utterly deplorable’ email to Jess Phillips MP – The Guardian

‘A 39-year-old man has been jailed for sending an “utterly deplorable” email to safeguarding minister Jess Phillips, one day after she was criticised by X owner Elon Musk.’

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The Guardian, 18th February 2025

Source: www.theguardian.com

Retailers to be required to report suspicious or bulk purchases of knives – The Guardian

‘Retailers will be required to report suspicious or bulk purchases of knives, and those caught selling blades to under-18s will face tougher sentences under a new raft of measures to clamp down on young people’s access to weapons labelled Ronan’s law.’

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The Guardian, 19th February 2025

Source: www.theguardian.com

Independent Sentencing Review – gov.uk

Posted February 18th, 2025 in criminal justice, imprisonment, Ministry of Justice, news, prisons, sentencing by sally

“The Independent Sentencing Review, chaired by David Gauke, has published Part 1 of the report.”

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gov.uk, 18th February 2025

Source: www.gov.uk

Prison system crisis due to overreliance on long sentences, says Gauke review – The Guardian

Posted February 18th, 2025 in criminal justice, imprisonment, news, prisons, reports, sentencing by sally

‘Successive governments’ overreliance on prison sentences and desire to seem “tough on crime” have driven the justice system in England and Wales to the brink of collapse, an official review has found.’

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The Guardian, 18th February 2025

Source: www.theguardian.com