International Law

Prison's use of force criticised

Posted on July 09, 2008
Prison's use of force criticisedThe use of force at Dartmoor Prison has been criticised in a report by the Chief Inspector of Prisons.The report by Ann Owers also highlighted evidence of "institutional disrespect" with poorly furnished cells and too many inmates locked up...

More liberties being taken in our police state

Posted on July 09, 2008
More liberties being taken in our police stateA pioneering curfew aiming at keeping children under 16 off the streets at night is being launched in a Cornish town. Police officers and local authority officials, some wearing head cameras to gather evidence, will patrol an area of Redruth and stop all youngsters of 15 and under who are out unsupervised after 9pm, and all under-10s out after 8pm...

More rapists will be convicted, promises Government

Posted on July 09, 2008
More rapists will be convicted, promises GovernmentThe Government says it will increase the conviction rate for rape, one of the most under-reported crimes.Isn't that a matter for the jury to decide?

Judge jails murderer who vowed to kill him

Posted on July 09, 2008
Judge jails murderer who vowed to kill himA judge whose father was murdered by a criminal he locked up in 1968 has jailed a killer who threatened to escape and kill him.Judge William Openshaw was stabbed to death by John Smith 13 years after sending him to borstal for stealing...

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Tens of thousands of criminals to be spared short jail terms

Posted on July 09, 2008
Tens of thousands of criminals to be spared short jail termsCriminals sent to prison for less than a year should be let off with a community punishment instead, the Government's sentencing advisers has said.The independent Sentencing Advisory Panel also said that there should be a presumption that thieves, burglars and anyone convicted of dishonesty should not receive a jail term...

Israel signs prisoner swap deal

Posted on July 08, 2008
Israel signs prisoner swap dealIsrael has formally signed an agreement with Lebanese militant group Hezbollah to exchange prisoners.An Israeli government spokesman said the deal had been signed "in the presence of a UN representative".Under the deal, two Israeli soldiers - seized in a 2006 raid and believed to be dead - will be handed over...

There can be no fair trials with this perjurer's charter

Posted on July 08, 2008
There can be no fair trials with this perjurer's charterBritish justice coped with the Krays and Northern Ireland without recourse to secret witnesses, and we don't need them nowParliament will this week be asked to make the most serious single assault on liberty in memory...

David Blunkett is a reformed man after a shock behind bars

Posted on July 08, 2008
David Blunkett is a reformed man after a shock behind barsLabour's toughest Home Secretary seems to have gone tender. The man who once wanted to ban hoodies now wants to hug them.David Blunkett spent ten days behind bars with young offenders for a reality TV show and emerged believing that society needs to be tough with them, but also understanding...

Cyclist 'knocked down and killed teenage girl'

Posted on July 08, 2008
Cyclist 'knocked down and killed teenage girl'A cyclist who ran down and killed a teenage girl as she walked along the pavement has denied a charge of dangerous cycling.Jason Howard, 36, was allegedly heard shouting "move because I'm not stopping" as he hurtled towards a group of teenagers at around 20mph...

Woman cleared to sue Lotto rapist

Posted on July 08, 2008
Woman cleared to sue Lotto rapistA retired teacher has cleared the final legal hurdle standing in the way of her bid to claim compensation from a serial rapist who won £7m on the lottery.The 78-year-old woman was told by a High Court judge on Tuesday that she can go ahead with her claim against 59-year-old Iorworth Hoare...

Tibetan monasteries empty as China jails monks to silence Olympic protests

Posted on July 08, 2008
Tibetan monasteries empty as China jails monks to silence Olympic protestsFamily members say that the monks have been told they will be incarcerated in Golmud only until the end of the Olympic Games in Beijing. The policy is part of a campaign by the Chinese Government to ensure that the Games, opening on August 8 and lasting for two weeks, pass off without a hitch and without protests from the restive Tibetans, they told The Times.

Biased judge failed to protect Madeleine's interests

Posted on July 08, 2008
Biased judge failed to protect Madeleine's interestsI had every reason to be concerned when I heard that the ambulance chasing International Family Law Group had contacted the McCanns in Praia da Luz to offer their services.At the recent High Court hearing, Tim Scott, QC, instructed by the International Family Law Group, who represented the McCanns, played the retreat on his bugle eloquently as the McCann team got routed in the face of a pincer movement by Leicestershire Police and the Serious Organised Crime Agency...

McCanns drop bid to release files

Posted on July 07, 2008
McCanns drop bid to release filesKate and Gerry McCann have withdrawn a bid at the High Court for police to release documents on the search for their missing daughter Madeleine.The move came after Leicestershire Police agreed to disclose 81 pieces of information about the investigation...

Technology to tackle prison drugs

Posted on July 07, 2008
Technology to tackle prison drugsIncreased security is needed to stop drugs from being smuggled into English and Welsh prisons, a former chief constable is expected to say later.

Sense and sentencing

Posted on July 07, 2008
Sense and sentencingMarcel Berlins writes in Writ LargeIt is no longer a matter of debate that sentencing policy is in a mess. The proliferation of ill-thought-out laws on sentencing since Labour took power has resulted in mass confusion and disenchantment among all connected with the criminal justice system of England and Wales...

Church will ordain women bishops

Posted on July 07, 2008
Church will ordain women bishopsThe Church of England's ruling body, the General Synod, has voted to confirm the ordination of women as bishops.This will mean there will have to be a whole new meaning to the saying banging the Bishop...

McCanns: Setting the record straight

Posted on July 07, 2008
McCanns: Setting the record straightLawyer on behalf of McCanns: The world knows that Madeleine was abducted from an apartment in the Algarve on 3 May.Portuguese police have decided that Madeleine McCann could not have been abducted, it was claimed yesterday...

Mrs Justice Hogg makes a pigs arse of herself

Posted on July 07, 2008
Mrs Justice Hogg makes a pigs arse of herselfI don't know why the Daily Telegraph has this misleading headline Madeleine McCann parents gain access to police files. All that Leicestershire Police have agreed to do is provide contact details and a summary of the information they provided to police from 81 files...

Convicted prisoners and the franchise

Posted on July 07, 2008
Convicted prisoners and the franchiseStandard Note:SN/PC/01764Last updated:11 June 2008Author:Isobel WhiteParliament and Constitution CentreThis standard note looks at the current position regarding convicted prisoners and the franchise. Following the judgment of the European Court of Human Rights on 6 October 2005 that the UK?s current ban on all serving prisoners from voting contravenes Article 3 of Protocol No 1 of the European Convention on Human Rights, the Government decided to publish a consultation document on options for a change in policy...

Review of measures to disrupt the supply of illicit drugs to prisons

Posted on July 07, 2008
Review of measures to disrupt the supply of illicit drugs to prisonsJack Straw has made a statement on David Blakey's review into the effectiveness of the Prison Service's measures for disrupting the supply of drugs into prisons.The Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice (Jack Straw):In the 'Prison Policy Update' document published in January this year I announced a major drive to overcome some of the principal barriers to the reform and rehabilitation of offenders...

Prisons Minister opens two new wings at HMP Bullingdon

Posted on July 07, 2008
Prisons Minister opens two new wings at HMP BullingdonPrisons Minister David Hanson MP officially opens a new 120 place unit at HMP Bullingdon (near Bicester) today, marking a significant contribution to the 1,614 new prison places delivered this year so far...

Piper Alpha anniversary honoured

Posted on July 06, 2008
Piper Alpha anniversary honouredThe 20th anniversary of the Piper Alpha disaster is being marked with memorial ceremonies on Sunday.A total of 167 men died in the North Sea platform disaster on 6 July, 1988. There were 61 survivors.A remembrance service is taking place at 1400 BST at the Kirk of St Nicholas in Aberdeen to mark the anniversary...

Political bloggers: the new opposition?

Posted on July 06, 2008
Political bloggers: the new opposition?Their party may be on the way out, but leftwing bloggers should prepare themselves for real powerWhat will happen to political bloggers when the government changes? The answer to that question says a lot about the condition of political debate in this country...

MPs accuse Washington of lying over rendition flights

Posted on July 06, 2008
MPs accuse Washington of lying over rendition flightsMPs are to launch an investigation into US activities on Diego Garcia after accusing Washington of lying about extraordinary rendition flights from the British-controlled island in the Indian Ocean...

MPs refuse to disclose details of staff pay

Posted on July 06, 2008
MPs refuse to disclose details of staff payAlmost 50 MPs have refused to tell the parliamentary authorities exactly what their office staff do and how much they are paid from public funds, it emerged yesterday.One in 13 MPs have failed to meet their obligation to submit copies of their employees' contracts of employment, which detail their working hours and salary scales...

Postcode lottery of rape conviction

Posted on July 06, 2008
Postcode lottery of rape convictionWomen who report a rape are five times less likely to see their attacker convicted in some parts of the country than in others, according to new research.An analysis of official figures reveals that the conviction rate for rapists fell in 18 out of 43 police force areas in England and Wales between 2004 and 2006...

World Most Luxuriest Jail in Leoben Austria

Posted on July 06, 2008
World Most Luxuriest Jail in Leoben AustriaHat-Tip to Ron Knee.

I'm warning you I am aggressive

Posted on July 06, 2008
I'm warning you I am aggressiveSausage dogs are the most aggressive dogsMore cute doggie photos

Civil servants paid £128 million in bonuses

Posted on July 06, 2008
Civil servants paid £128 million in bonusesCivil servants have been paid more than £128 million in bonuses over the past year, new figures show.Civil Servants have been paid more than £128 million in bonuses over the past year, figures obtained by the Conservatives show...

The Government?s proposed options for changing the law in relation to prisoners voting rights

Posted on July 06, 2008
The Government?s proposed options for changing the law in relation to prisoners voting rightsFollowing on from this post...the nitty gritty of the government's thrust is as follows:8The Government?s proposed options for changing the law8.1Enfranchise prisoners sentenced to less than a specified termThe policy of a number of member states of the Council of Europe is to allow prisoners sentenced for less than a specified term to retain the right to vote but to disenfranchise those who have been given longer sentences...

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