Sanity on the Horizon

The head of the judiciary in England and Wales said today that the criminal courts charge introduced by the last government for guilty defendants has ‘not gone correctly’ and needs to be reviewed ‘as soon as possible’.

Answering questions from journalists, Lord Thomas of Cwmgiedd, the lord chief justice, said that imposing the charge on top of other levies ‘is not raising much money’ and has increased the number of people who cannot pay.

He likened that to the situation posed by fixed penalty notices, where individuals found ‘very significant sums levied against them which they had absolutely no prospect of paying’.

When a policy ‘has not gone correctly’ it should be looked at again, he said. 

Pressed on what he meant by ‘not gone correctly’, Lord Thomas said: ‘It is obvious that there is a problem with financial penalties as a whole, so I would hope this is an area the government will engage with as soon as possible but in a wider context,’ he said. 

‘That’s why I very much hope that the lord chancellor will look at the matter in the round, and perhaps find an interim solution.’

Lord Thomas of Cwmgiedd said that the courts system as currently established would not be able to cope with a combination of spending cuts and an increased workload of complex sex, cybercrime and terrorism cases. ‘The only way forward is reform.’

He said that progress is being made on the Leveson proposals for increasing efficiency in criminal courts, but that more needs to be done. 

Answering questions from journalists, Lord Thomas of Cwmgiedd, the lord chief justice, said that imposing the charge on top of other levies ‘is not raising much money’ and has increased the number of people who cannot pay.

He likened that to the situation posed by fixed penalty notices, where individuals found ‘very significant sums levied against them which they had absolutely no prospect of paying’.

When a policy ‘has not gone correctly’ it should be looked at again, he said. 

Lord Thomas of Cwmgiedd said that the courts system as currently established would not be able to cope with a combination of spending cuts and an increased workload of complex sex, cybercrime and terrorism cases. ‘The only way forward is reform.’

He said that progress is being made on the Leveson proposals for increasing efficiency in criminal courts, but that more needs to be done. 

Containing a rise in costs is ‘critical to reform’, he said, noting that: ‘As for lawyers, the market has been good for them on the whole. Legal fees are high.’

I am humbly grateful that His Lordship has come round to my point of view at last. All that remains is for those of us who loathe injustice to club together to buy a suit of sackcloth for the appalling Grayling. I shall provide ashes without any fee.

Why Is That Then?

I was looking through a defendant's pre-cons today, when I was struck by one chap's conviction six years ago for fraudulently attempting to gain admission  to the UK. He was given a prison sentence of about ten months or so, and served it.

So why, half a decade later, is he still in the country, committing a regular series of low-level offences?

Murder 2

The case referred to in the previous post was indeed dealt with in a court some way away, but I had the privilege of finding out what is going on from Someone In The Know. As it turned out there was another murder that did come to us today. I was in a different courtroom, but the lay bench in another court did see the murder case, although our DJ was sitting doing something else.  The whole thing was over in five minutes, and the alleged killer was on his way to the Old Bailey.

I have no idea who it was but a couple of times during our morning trial there was a loud banging from the cells under our courtroom, as one of our customers was clearly unhappy. It is surprising how much damage a very cross man can do:on one occasion a steel framed cell door was loosened in its brick wall by a prisoner using no more than his own strength. On my occasional forays downstairs I still see the damaged plaster around the outside of that door.

It's Murder Out There

I see from the media that there has been a recent murder quite near my courthouse. It appears that someone has been arrested, so when I sit  later this week there is a small possibility that I shall see him or her. Once upon a time these cases routinely turned up on the magistrates' list, for a decision on bail before the inevitable committal to a higher court. We no longer have the job of deciding on bail in these cases so the whole business is over in a few minutes. Serious cases come on first, to allow the jailers downstairs to get the defendant on his way; the only unusual feature is a full press bench and perhaps a few more police than usual. Anticlimax reigns.