The topic of Diplomatic Immunity has been in the news this week. The UK Foreign Secretary is requesting the wife of a US diplomat be returned to the UK to face a criminal investigation into the death of a 19 year old here in the UK. She has claimed Diplomatic Immunity, and so far, the US Government has refused for the immunity to be waived. So what is Diplomatic Immunity – and how does it work?
The Conservative Party Conference has seen calls being met for the Government to get tough on sentencing for violent and sexual crimes. This article looks at what these changes will mean moving forward and for existing offenders in the system.
The EU has published a report, ‘Rights in practice: access to a lawyer and procedural rights in criminal and European arrest warrant proceedings’, that details the extent to which fundamental human rights, in the context of criminal justice, are upheld across the EU. So what are your rights – and are they fully exercised?
In the case of Janet Commins, forensic evidence saw the original conviction of her “killer” overturned as new technology convicted someone else of her killing.
In some circumstances, it may be the case that there may be an absent witness. There can be numerous reasons for this – but the question is can the defence use this to their advantage?
There is to be an increase in the number of offences subject to prosecution appeal, where it may be deemed that sentences applied are unduly lenient.
