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latest news for 23 May 2013
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In the Media
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Disability test ‘unfair’ to the mentally ill, judges rule - May-23-13 » The Government’s controversial medical test to assess whether disabled people are fit for work has been judged unfair on the mentally ill by a court which has ordered sweeping changes. ... [view]
Abuse trial that shamed the British legal system - May-23-13 » Demands for vulnerable witnesses to receive greater protection in child sex cases are made today as the full details of a trial that critics say shamed British justice can finally be revealed. ... [view]
Be a judicial assistant for a year - May-23-13 » Each year seven new judicial assistants work with Supreme Court judges in an “unparalled learning opportunity” ... [view]
Closure threat to 150 High Street law firms - May-23-13 » Is the solicitors’ regulator putting English firms at risk by spending too much time on rules and form-filling? ... [view]
Salaries for new solicitors ‘too high’ - May-23-13 » Although some London firms pay their newly qualified solicitors up to £95,000, the age of high salaries could be about to end ... [view]
Can’t find a contract? Become a paralegal - May-23-13 » “Paralegal” is becoming a career in its own right and is no longer seen as the professional cul-de-sac that it once was ... [view]
Squatting in commercial premises - May-23-13 » The Government seems to have realised there is no distinction between squatting in residential and commercial premises ... [view]
Is Interpol fighting for truth and justice, or helping the villains? - May-22-13 » Most of us take an entirely positive view of Interpol, the cross-border crime-busting organisation, even though we have only the haziest view of what it actually does. This is at least partly thanks to the influence of Biggles, hero of schoolboy fiction, who used to go on perilous missions for Interpol to track down international felons. Agatha Christie was another powerful influence. Her Belgian detective Hercule Poirot might have a discrete word with well-placed Interpol friends when he wanted information on some master criminal. ... [view]
MPs raise new concerns about police commissioner spending - May-22-13 » The House of Commons' Home Affairs Select Committee found 17 commissioners, or PCCs, had a budget higher than the former police authorities, which were disbanded when the new directly-elected positions were created last November. ... [view]
Man jailed for smothering mother - May-22-13 » A man who smothered and strangled his mother has been jailed for 13 years, police said today. ... [view]
Banned driver who mowed down cyclists is jailed for 10 years - May-22-13 » A disqualified driver fleeing police was jailed for 10 years and six months on Wednesday for killing a couple he mowed down in a car as they rode their tandem bike. ... [view]
HMRC proposes crackdown on LLP ‘disguised employment’ - May-22-13 » Wednesday 22 May 2013 by Michael Cross Some members of limited liability partnership (LLP) firms could face higher tax and national insurance deductions under government proposals for tackling 'disguised employment' published this week. ... [view]
Small business spurning legal services – LSB research - May-22-13 » Wednesday 22 May 2013 by John Hyde Just one in eight small businesses will turn to a solicitor to solve a legal problem despite many suffering financial loss as a result. ... [view]
British computer hackers behind bars - from the archive, 22 May 1993 - May-22-13 » Yesterday, two bright young men described by a judge as having indulged in 'intellectual joyriding ' were jailed for six months. ... [view]
Naming suspects is a powerful tool for justice, warns DPP - May-22-13 » The Director of Public Prosecutions said yesterday that a ban on naming people who have been arrested could harm justice. ... [view]
Thousands of child sex abuse victims, says minister - May-21-13 » Lord Taylor of Holbeach said the figure - which he described as "dramatic" - hinted at the true scale of organised sex abuse in Britain. ... [view]
Crime commissioner pledges to appoint teenage crime tsar - May-21-13 » The post will be created in Staffordshire later this year, and Matthew Ellis aims to employ someone under-18 as he believes that they can better connect with their peers. ... [view]
Police hunt prison fugitive after string of robberies - May-21-13 » Police are hunting for a fugitive who has absconded from prison and carried out a string of robberies. ... [view]
New doubt cast on police 'secret arrests' - May-21-13 » Keir Starmer QC, the head of the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), told MPs he would like "wriggle room" to name suspects before they are charged. ... [view]
Hospital ward for UK's most dangerous killers run like 'social club' - May-21-13 » While staff at the all-male Broadmoor top security hospital watched television, at least one patient was enjoying a sexual relationship with a woman therapist, it was claimed on Tuesday, leading to another offender asking to be given an HIV test. ... [view]
Poor will suffer from court fee changes, MoJ warned - May-21-13 » Tuesday 21 May 2013 by John Hyde Government plans to means-test waivers for civil court or tribunal fees could impact the most deprived and vulnerable sections of society, the Civil Justice Council has warned. ... [view]
Call for police to be allowed to name some suspects on arrest - May-21-13 » Britain's top prosecutor has called for more "wriggle room" in new rules which say police should not normally name suspects they have arrested before they are charged unless there are exceptional circumstances. ... [view]
Twitter hit-and-run boast shows dangers of 'road tax' entitlement | Dawn Foster - May-21-13 » It's safe to assume that most people in the event of hitting a cyclist while driving, who realised what they had done, would stop, call the police, and stay on the scene. Not so for one young woman, who appears to have hit a cyclist, carried on driving, and then most bizarrely taken to Twitter to boast of the incident. ... [view]
ACPO comment on the national police response to domestic abuse - May-21-13 » ACPO lead on domestic abuse Chief Constable Carmel Napier said: ... [view]
Family of woman killed by convicted murderer call for public inquiry - May-21-13 » Maria Stubbings, 50, was murdered by Marc Chivers at her home in Chelmsford, Essex, after he had been freed from a German prison less than a year earlier, having served 15 years for murdering his then girlfriend Sabine Rappold. ... [view]
New plans for secret arrests introduced - May-20-13 » New guidance rubber stamped by the College of Policing yesterday, will now mean forces can only identify suspects before they are charged in exceptional circumstances. ... [view]
Retired priest jailed over sex attacks at children's home - May-20-13 » A retired Church of England priest found guilty of a catalogue of historic sex attacks on children at a Barnardo's home has been jailed for 10 years. ... [view]
Thousands of British police sent to Northern Ireland amid fear of terror attack at G8 summit - May-20-13 » World leaders including Barack Obama and Vladimir Putin will jet into the luxury Loch Erne Golf Resort in County Fermanagh for the two day conference which has in the past attracted wide scale demonstrations and public disorder. ... [view]
Nick Clegg: Prison costs more than going to Eton - May-20-13 » The Liberal Democrat leader gave a speech outlining support for probation staff who start their own John Lewis-style mutuals, and announced a £7 million package to help the fledgling mutuals and small rehabilitation charities bid for contracts. ... [view]
Teenage burglar with electronic tag pulls a fast one on G4S security official - May-20-13 » The teenager was asked over the phone by an official from G4S to walk around the perimeter of his home so they could map the curfew zone they had to monitor. ... [view]
Police take DNA samples from children every ten minutes - May-20-13 » In total over the last two years police have taken DNA samples from 120,000 children. In 2012 officers took nearly 54,000 samples from people under 18, including more than 360 from ten-year-olds. ... [view]
Police retain DNA from thousands of children - May-20-13 »  ... [view]
High-value cases take toll on fraud-busting numbers at the SFO - May-20-13 » Britain’s fraud-fighting agency prosecuted only 20 defendants over the past year, compared with 52 the year before, new figures have revealed. ... [view]
New Asbo laws could infringe freedom, think tank warns - May-19-13 » Fresh powers contained in the Anti-Social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Bill, which was announced in the Queen's Speech, will give local authorities the right to outlaw certain activities from designated areas. ... [view]
Plebgate: Mitchell supporters demand answers about Met Commissioner's role - May-19-13 » Friends of the former chief whip, who was forced to resign after admitting swearing at police officers in Downing Street, have established that the head of the Metropolitan Police held a meeting with journalists just prior to reports appearing in two newspapers suggesting a police investigation had found no evidence to support Mr Mitchell's version of events. ... [view]
What do you do after a burglary? - May-18-13 » There has been good news on burglary in recent weeks. Official figures show that break-ins were down 9% in 2012, in part because the fall in electrical prices means there's less stuff that is worth nicking. The Economist last week analysed the "Not so mean streets" of Britain where despite recession and high unemployment, burglary continues its decade-long decline. But this offered little comfort to us after arriving home from the cinema last weekend to find our home ransacked. Computers stolen, watches and jewellery gone, cameras looted, drawers emptied and clothes strewn across the floor. Nothing really prepares you for it. ... [view]
Royal Academy of Music's former IT head jailed for conning school out of £370,000 - May-18-13 » Steven Newell, 32, used false qualifications to get the job before stealing the money, which he spent on 'gambling, drinking and women'. ... [view]
Solicitor tried to take drugs into jail - May-18-13 » A solicitor who was caught trying to smuggle mobile phones and drugs into Saughton jail in Edinburgh has been jailed for four years. ... [view]
European data plan labelled ‘demented’ - May-17-13 » Monday 20 May 2013 by Michael Cross European Commission data protection plans are the biggest threat currently facing the UK economy, a senior Downing Street figure said this week. ... [view]
Son fakes kidnap to extort money from father - May-17-13 » Student Viraj Mashru, 21, staged the kidnap after his father Rajendra, fed up with his wastrel lifestyle, cut off his £500 a week allowance. ... [view]
Pakistani community must tackle grooming gangs, justice minister insists - May-17-13 » Just days after seven Asian men were convicted of carrying out crimes of "medieval" depravity against girls as young as 11, in Oxford, Mr Green said it was time to dismiss any vestiges of political correctness around the issue. ... [view]
Ministry of Justice brings in auditors to investigate tagging contracts - May-17-13 » The government has hired auditors to investigate whether it was overcharged on contracts for electronic tagging and monitoring of offenders which have cost £107m over the past year. ... [view]
Secret arrest plans in disarray - May-17-13 » Proposals by the Association of Chief Police Officers, (Acpo) sought to end the naming of suspects on arrest, unless there were exceptional circumstances. ... [view]
LGBT police officers tell young gay people It Gets Better - May-17-13 » For the first time, a collective of 36 lesbian, gay, bisexual and trans (LGBT) police officers and police staff from 16 police forces across the UK tell their stories, providing a message of transformation, hope and encouragement to vulnerable young gay people that It Gets Better. ... [view]
Diamond thief kills himself and wife at plush London address - May-17-13 » Robert Mercati, 63, is believed to have strangled Margaret, his wife of 35 years, before committing suicide at the property in Bloomsbury. ... [view]
Using dead children's identities was 'common practice' amongst undercover officers - May-17-13 » Despite his findings Mick Creedon has told MPs that none of families of children whose identities were used have been contacted and informed. ... [view]
Why are the LulzSec hackers being locked up? | James Ball - May-17-13 » For lawmakers, illicit downloaders and hackers alike, the internet is one of the few bits of frontier territory left in the world: for the "rogues" there's lots more scope to get away with things not possible in more civilised, everyday reality, while for the lawmakers there's an ungovernable mess. ... [view]
Criminal legal aid cuts double - May-17-13 » Friday 17 May 2013 by Catherine Baksi Ministry of Justice officials have confirmed that £350m could be cut from the criminal legal aid budget - twice as much as the amount stated in the consultation on transforming legal aid. ... [view]
SRA’s popularity slips - May-17-13 » Friday 17 May 2013 by John Hyde Solicitors are less likely to speak positively of the Solicitors Regulation Authority than they were a year ago, a Law Society survey has found. ... [view]
Taxpayer overcharged by millions for electronic tagging - May-17-13 » The Ministry of Justice has brought in external auditors to find out how much the two companies have incorrectly claimed from the taxpayer since 2005. ... [view]
Dedicated traffic courts set up to fast-track motoring offences - May-16-13 » Around half a million motoring cases are sent to magistrates' courts each year, but can often take longer than serious and complex offences to process. ... [view]
Special traffic courts to deal with motoring cases under ministers' plans - May-16-13 » Traffic-light jumpers and speeding motorists are to be dealt with in special traffic courts in a bid to free up time for more serious cases, the government has announced. ... [view]