Guildford pub bombings inquest to resume 45 years on – BBC News

Posted February 1st, 2019 in coroners, explosives, inquests, Ireland, miscarriage of justice, murder, news, terrorism by tracey

‘The inquest into the deaths of five people killed in the 1974 Guildford pub bombings will be resumed.’

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BBC News, 31st January 2019

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Men who wrongly served 24 years in prison denied compensation – The Independent

‘Two men who between them spent 24 years in prison before their convictions were overturned are not entitled to compensation, judges have ruled.’

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The Independent, 30th January 2019

Source: www.independent.co.uk

Was this woman wrongly convicted of murder? – BBC News

Posted January 10th, 2019 in domestic violence, families, mental health, miscarriage of justice, murder, news, women by sally

‘Emma-Jayne Magson stabbed her partner with a steak knife then left him to bleed to death. Yet her family believes her murder conviction was a miscarriage of justice. Why?’

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BBC News, 10th January 2019

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Bungling police lost important documents in Guildford IRA bomb case, coroner hears – Daily Telegraph

Posted December 21st, 2018 in bereavement, coroners, documents, inquests, Ireland, miscarriage of justice, news, police, victims by tracey

‘Bungling police lost important documents in Guildford IRA bomb case, coroner hears.’

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Daily Telegraph, 20th December 2018

Source: www.telegraph.co.uk

Scrapping juries in rape trials risks rise in miscarriages of justice – The Guardian

‘There is no evidence juries are failing their duty. Abolishing them could increase pressure on judges to boost conviction rates.’

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The Guardian, 22nd November 2018

Source: www.theguardian.com

‘Lady in the lake’ murder case referred to court of appeal – The Guardian

‘A man who hanged himself in prison after being convicted of murdering his wife and dumping her body in Coniston Water in the Lake District could receive a posthumous pardon after the case was referred to the court of appeal.’

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The Guardian, 26th October 2018

Source: www.theguardian.com

Failure to disclose vital evidence in criminal cases growing, says watchdog – The Guardian

‘Failure to disclose vital evidence is the biggest single cause of miscarriages of justice and the problem is getting worse, the outgoing chairman of the Criminal Cases Review Commission (CCRC) has said.’

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The Guardian, 11th October 2018

Source: www.theguardian.com

Miscarriage of justice body’s funding cuts criticised as workload grows – The Guardian

Posted September 10th, 2018 in budgets, Criminal Cases Review Commission, miscarriage of justice, news by tracey

‘Government funding of the Criminal Cases Review Commission, the last hope for people battling miscarriages of justice, has come under attack as the number applications rises steeply.’

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The Guardian, 9th September 2018

Source: www.theguardian.com

Paul Cleeland’s 45-year fight to clear name over gun murder – BBC News

‘A man at the centre of one of the UK’s longest alleged miscarriages of justice is making a fresh bid to clear his name after a legal fight spanning more than four decades.’

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BBC News, 12th July 2018

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Miscarriages of justice body is not fit for purpose, lawyers say – The Guardian

‘A group of prominent lawyers claim the official body responsible for investigating alleged miscarriages of justice is not fit for purpose.’

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The Guardian, 30th May 2018

Source: www.theguardian.com

Miscarriage of justice victims are cast aside in the UK. The details are shocking – The Guardian

Posted May 10th, 2018 in appeals, compensation, miscarriage of justice, news, Supreme Court, victims by sally

‘The wrongly convicted are abandoned by the state. This week, the supreme court has a chance to change that.’

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The Guardian, 9th May 2018

Source: www.theguardian.com

Men wrongfully imprisoned for 24 years seek compensation – The Guardian

‘The fairness of the criminal courts process goes on trial this week when two men who spent a total of 24 years wrongfully imprisoned seek compensation for their ordeals.’

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The Guardian, 7th May 2018

Source: www.theguardian.com

Unlawful imprisonment for council tax non-payment “one of the largest mass miscarriages of justice in British history” – Local Government Lawyer

Posted March 28th, 2018 in council tax, imprisonment, miscarriage of justice, news by tracey

‘The unlawful imprisonment of people for council tax non-payment “is likely to be one of the largest mass miscarriages of justice in British history”, the chair of the Criminal Bar Association, Angela Rafferty QC, and 57 other signatories of a letter to The Guardian have claimed.’

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Local Government Lawyer, 27th March 2018

Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk

Third of all lawyers believe disclosure problems have led to miscarriages of justice – Daily Telegraph

‘The scale of the disclosure crisis facing the criminal justice system has been laid bare, after a survey found that half of all lawyers were now running into problems on a daily basis and a third saying they believed it had resulted in wrongful convictions.’

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Daily Telegraph, 27th February 2018

Source: www.telegraph.co.uk

Police wrongly pursued retired fire chief rather than investigate blackmail claim against fantasist who accused him of rape – Daily Telegraph

Posted February 12th, 2018 in appeals, blackmail, miscarriage of justice, news, police, rape by tracey

‘Police wrongly pursued a rape case against a retired fire chief rather than investigate a blackmail claim against the fantasist who made the allegation, the Telegraph can disclose. David Bryant, 67, spent almost three years in jail after being convicted of rape in a miscarriage of justice that further plunges into crisis the police handling of sex abuse cases. Mr Bryant’s conviction was overturned in the Court of Appeal and now a High Court judge has raised serious questions over a police force’s failure to investigate his accuser.’

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Daily Telegraph, 10th February 2018

Source: www.telegraph.co.uk

Underfunded justice system ‘crumbling’, top criminal barrister says – The Guardian

‘Failures to disclose evidence in rape prosecutions are a sign of the “dystopian disaster” engulfing the criminal justice system that has been caused by chronic government underfunding, the head of the criminal bar has warned.’

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The Guardian, 29th January 2018

Source: www.theguardian.com

Miscarriages of justice – OUP Blog

Posted January 22nd, 2018 in appeals, constitutional reform, courts, miscarriage of justice, news by sally

‘Today we take it for granted that anyone convicted of a crime should be able to appeal to a higher court. However, this wasn’t always so. English lawyers traditionally set great store in the deterrent value of swift and final justice. Over the course of the nineteenth century, reformers pressed for the establishment of a court that could review sentencing and order retrials on points of law or new evidence. These advocates of change met with fierce resistance from the judiciary and much of the legal profession, and the cause of reform had little success until a spectacular miscarriage of justice came to light.’

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OUP Blog, 21st January 2018

Source: blog.oup.com

Falling forensic science standards ‘making miscarriages of justice inevitable’ – The Guardian

Posted January 19th, 2018 in forensic science, miscarriage of justice, news, police, reports by tracey

‘Police forces are failing to meet the official standards for forensic science, making miscarriages of justice inevitable, the government’s forensic regulator has said. In her annual report, Gillian Tully highlighted her growing concerns about the failure of some forensic firms used by the police to meet basic quality standards. It means innocent people could be wrongly convicted and offenders escaping justice.’

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The Guardian, 19th January 2018

Source: www.theguardian.com

High Court admits people have been wrongly jailed for not paying council tax – The Independent

‘The High Court has admitted up to 17 people in England and Wales were unlawfully sent to jail for not paying their council tax last year – but it refused to accept this constituted “systematic failings” by the courts.’

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The Independent, 17th January 2018

Source: www.independent.co.uk

Surrey ‘mailbag thief’ jailed in 1976 overturns conviction – BBC News

‘A man who served eight months in a youth jail for stealing mailbags in the 1970s has had his name cleared.’

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BBC News, 17th January 2018

Source: www.bbc.co.uk