Wednesday 7 September 2011

Criminal Cases (Punishment & Review) Bill

[The following is an excerpt from a report on the BBC News website about the proposed legislation contained in the Scottish Government's Programme for Government 2011-2012, which was published today:]

The body which investigates possible miscarriages of justice - the Scottish Criminal Cases Review Commission - will get powers to decide whether to publish reports in appeal cases it has looked into, where such appeals have been abandoned.

The bill essentially relates to an SCCRC report into the Lockerbie bomber case.

The commission previously referred Abdelbasset al-Megrahi's conviction to the Court of Appeal, although Megrahi, who is terminally ill with cancer, later dropped his appeal before being released on compassionate grounds to return home to Libya.

[Oh dear, oh dear.  "Powers to decide", forsooth.  Why does the proposed  legislation simply allow the SCCRC to consider release of the Statement of Reasons in the Megrahi case, rather than requiring it to do so? I think we should be told.  And this is quite apart from the fact that an Act of the Scottish Parliament isn't needed in the first place.]

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