There are typically less than 100 prosecutions each year for this offence but given that the defendants are public servants such as police officers, prison officers and the like, the consequences of a conviction on careers, pensions and even liberty can be very severe. This week...
Whenever a person is remanded in custody in criminal proceedings, a time limit is set within which the trial must be concluded. The Covid lockdown meant that trials were temporarily suspended leading to issues with custody time limits, if a trial cannot take place within...
Did you know that e-scooters fall within the definition of a motor vehicle? You would not be alone if you said no. Due to the growing popularity of e-scooters and general ignorance in respect of the laws governing them, the Metropolitan Police have issued an...
It is an offence to "ply for hire" without a licence. The offence comes from the Town and Police Clauses Act 1847, section 45 states it is an offence for a person to allow a vehicle (referred to as a carriage) to be used as...
If the Attorney General believes that a sentence is "unduly lenient", or too soft as the newspapers may say, she can ask for the case to be referred back to court to be reconsidered. This is what happened to Taha Amin. He pleaded guilty to several...
It is often the case that a defendant does not dispute that a crime has been committed but denies any participation. In such cases, it will be not only essential to challenge any evidence that points to the defendant as being guilty but also look for...
In the usual run of events, a witness will give their evidence, be subject to cross-examination, and in some cases re-examination. But, things do not always go to plan, and the Court of Appeal has had to deal with several such cases. In Stretton and McCallion (1988)...
The closing speech is a significant opportunity for the defence to make a plea to the jury as to why a not guilty verdict ought to be returned. The speech, which will follow any prosecution closing, allows the defence to attempt to destroy parts or...
Human trafficking as a defence In a recent case an appellant, referred to only as “V” pleaded guilty to producing cannabis and was sentenced to 26 months' detention. He appealed against his conviction. The first issue you may think of is that he pleaded guilty, so how...
Encrypted electronic communications 'Encrochat' provided an encrypted telephone network that was said to be popular with criminals for its encrypted messaging. Recent joint police operations in Europe allowed officers to hack into the software resulting in the arrest of 746 suspected criminals in the UK. Across Europe,...