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One of the most serious offences that can come before a court is ‘perverting the course of justice’, this is because it strikes at the very heart of the justice system.  Such offending includes taking points for someone else.

Due to its seriousness, immediate custody almost always follows, yet there are a surprising number of people who commit this offence, thinking that they will easily get away with it.

“Offences of perverting the course of justice are intrinsically so serious that they will almost always attract an immediate custodial sentence unless there are exceptional circumstances justifying a different course” (R v Cronin (2017)).

Know a family member sitting on nine penalty points?

The scenario is a common one.  One person in the family already has 9 points on their driving licence.  A Notice of Intended Prosecution drops through the door in relation to a further road traffic offence.

The new road traffic offence on its own is likely to be relatively minor.  It will only result in 3 penalty points and a modest fine. But, in this instance, due to the previous points on the licence, it may well result in a driving disqualification.

It may be that another family member with a clean licence thinks about taking points for someone else.  The thought process might go – how easy would it be for another person to take the blame?  Abe made to name a relative abroad.   Who would possibly find out?

Of course, the first mistake here is the belief that you will not be caught taking points for someone else.

In reality, however, the police take a keen interest in these cases, and often it requires only a modicum of detective work to reveal the true offender.

The consequences of the offending

The consequences of taking points for someone else can be horrendous.  The points follow, as does the disqualification which now becomes a reality with no realistic prospect of arguing exceptional hardship.  Worst of all, two people are arrested, possibly in the early hours, in front of friends and family, maybe even young children.

And finally, a prison sentence follows.  All to avoid a few penalty points.

Considering taking points for someone else?

The irony of the situation as set out above is that in many cases the driving disqualification could have been avoided.  This is particularly true if early advice had been obtained from an experienced road traffic law practitioner.

Many otherwise decent hardworking people find themselves before the court through decisions made in panic. Before acting always seek advice.

Contact your nearest office to speak to one of our expert road traffic lawyers about your case.

Alternatively you the contact form below.

All posts by Andrew Wesley/h3>

Despite all of the warnings, and many reasons not to, some people end up enticed into the world of so-called ‘recreational drugs’.

There are a great many substances that might properly be categorised as ‘recreational drugs’.  Popular substances include cannabis and cocaine. First use often occurs at a party.  Normal inhibitions may have been diminished by alcohol or the sheer fun of the occasion. Despite the apparent short-term joys that might flow from the use of a drug, the harsh reality will be felt for some for a long time after that.

This is the darker side of drug use, as seen through the eyes of the criminal justice system.  It is told through a series of case studies.

Sara’s drug driving conviction

‘Sara saw no harm in smoking a few joints of cannabis. If anything, she felt better than she had for a long time. She was never stupid enough to drink drive, but did not realise just how long cannabis would remain in her system.

But for the faulty brake light the police officer would not have pulled her over the next morning, would not have asked for a roadside drugs test, would not have arrested her and kept her in a cell for 5 hours and would not have charged her with drug driving and had her produced before a court.

But for her ignorance of the effect of drugs, she would not have been disqualified from driving for 18 months and would not have lost her job.’

Daniel’s caution for possession of ecstasy

‘If Daniel hadn’t been spotted by club security, nobody would have been any the wiser, but he was. The ejection from the club was not something that particularly bothered him, and receiving a police caution seemed like a slap on the wrist, of little consequence.

In the morning Daniel returned to his job, and normality resumed, until late Summer when taking the family to the United States for a well-earned summer holiday.

Little did he know that one simple caution for a drugs offence could have led to him being refused entry to the US and placed on the next flight home. Daniel hadn’t mentioned the nightclub incident to his family. Until now.’

Rachel’s caution for possession of cocaine

‘8 A* at GCSE, 3 A* at A Level, a first-class degree in medicine. Life was good for Rachel until she accepted a caution for possessing a tiny amount of cocaine. Rachel will never forget the arrest and police caution, not just because of how frightening and embarrassing the experience was, but because on each medical job application she completes, throughout her entire career, she will have to disclose it.’

How We Can Assist if you are arrested for recreational drugs

Regrettably, for us, stories like those of Sara, Daniel and Rachel are familiar.

If you are arrested for any offence please seek legal advice before being interviewed by the police. Minor drug offences are often dealt with by way of police caution, and it is tempting to try and get the process over with as quickly as possible.

In reality, however, despite what you may be told or think, asking for a solicitor not only costs nothing (as you qualify for legal aid) but does not delay your release from custody.

In many instances, it speeds up your release.  It also means that we can advise on the best long-term options for you.

We all make mistakes, but often the biggest mistake is not taking legal advice.

Contact your nearest office for emergency legal advice

Our advice and representation in police interview if you are spoken to about recreational drugs will be free of charge.  All of our office numbers are answered 24 hours a day 7 days a week.  The advice will be free whether you are interviewed while under arrest or as a volunteer.  You can find more about the benefit of legal advice generally here. 

You can find your nearest office here or use the contact form below.

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When the Director of Public Prosecutions Alison Saunders feels the need to write to a national newspaper to apologise for a prosecution failure in an individual case, something significant must have gone wrong.  The failure related to Crown Court disclosure of evidential material.

Of course, it might be thought a great pity that she chose to write to the newspaper first, rather than the person wrongly accused of rape.

So, what were the things that the prosecution and police got wrong in the case of Liam Allan?

Mr Allan was charged with multiple accusations of rape and sexual assault.  This is the type of case that juries throughout the country grapple with on a daily basis.  It would no doubt be a challenge for jury members in any circumstances.

Jury trial for serious sexual offences

First the jury would hear the complainant in alleging that she was a victim of serious sexual crime.  The jury would then hear the position of the young man in question who had always stated that that it was all consensual.

As most sexual encounters happen in private, as lawyers we will often face cases where the case involves the word of one person against another. Can there be smoke without fire?  Why would the allegation be made in the first place if untrue?

But what if the key to ‘solving’ the issue of whose account was correct was sitting in phone records that had already been obtained.  All that was required was that people simply do their job. That was the situation in the case of Liam Allan.

After the alleged crime, the complainant sent a series of text messages to Mr Allan asking for more sex. The messages disclosed, in fact,  that she wanted violent sex.  She spoke about wanting to be raped. Even worse here, in a further round of texts, she made clear to a friend that no crime had been committed by Mr Allan.

This is the type of evidence which should hole a case below the water line, leading to the end of a prosecution.  In this case it did, but only after two years. Mr Allan understandably described this period as a ‘living hell’.

Failure to disclose text messages

The sadness, in this case, is that it could have been avoided.  This is because Mr Allan raised the issue of text messages in his police interview.  His account was ignored.  Instead, the officer in the case went on to also ignore clear guidelines on Crown Court disclosure.  Although the police had the text messages he did not bring them to the attention of the prosecuting barrister.

It was only a very late intervention, three days into the trial, that uncovered what the police had known all along, that Mr Allan was innocent. So, in the end, all’s well that ends well.  Commentators might argue that the system works.  For Mr Allan, it will be a long time indeed before the scars of that period heal.

While we would wish to provide you with the assurance that Mr Allan’s case is a ‘one-off’, we cannot. The issue of disclosure has been a fundamental problem in the area of criminal justice for decades.  This point has been illustrated by dozens of high profile miscarriages of justice.

It would appear likely that these cases must only be the tip of the iceberg.  Every single day the liberty of people standing trial is put at risk due to failures within the disclosure process.

Ensure you receive proper Crown Court disclosure of evidence

Because we are acutely aware of these problems and the risks to your case of a failure of Crown Court disclosure, all of our staff work relentlessly to ensure that all relevant evidence is revealed by the police and the prosecution.

From first police disclosure, right through to trial applications, we do not rest until satisfied that cases of our clients are prepared to the very highest of standards.

Instruct an expert crown court litigator

We provide nationwide advice and representation from our six offices across the East Midlands.  Please contact your most convenient office to make an appointment to discuss your case.

Alternatively you can use the contact form below.

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Nottingham crime solicitor Nick Walsh represented a client appearing before Nottingham Magistrates’ Court charged with permitting her premises to be used for the cultivation of cannabis.

No legal representation in police interview

She had not chosen to seek free and independent legal advice in her interview with the police.  She had made admissions to the offence and had told the police that she had been promised payment by those growing the cannabis.

At the time of the offence, Nick’s client was 19 years old and had never been in trouble with the police or the courts.

Cultivation of cannabis valued at £15 000

The prosecution valued the cannabis as having a resale value in small deals of £15 000.  The sentencing guidelines relevant to this offence of permitting her premises to be used for the cultivation of cannabis suggested that the starting point for the court when considering sentence was a prison sentence of 12 months.  Although our client could expect a reduction for the fact that she had not been in trouble before and because of her early admissions the court would still be considering custody.

Substantial personal mitigation

Nick spent the time needed to discover that his client had substantial personal mitigation.  She had been put under pressure to allow an ex partner to grow cannabis in the loft.  She believed that there were only five plants.  When she found out the true scale of the operation she became very frightened.  She had considered telling her dad.  However, she had been threatened that if she did both she and her child would be in danger.

She was also told that if the drugs were lost as a result of her actions then she would incur a drug debt to the value of the drugs.   Once the police had seized the drugs our client left her home and was homeless.  Despite this, she had gone on to complete her college course and found a job.

Powerful and persuasive advocacy

Through Nick’s persuasive advocacy, the court felt able to depart significantly from the sentencing guideline.  Instead of a prison sentence, or a suspended sentence order or community order, the court imposed a conditional discharge for two years.  This means that unless she commits a further offence during that period she will not be punished for allowing her premises to be used for the cultivation of cannabis.

Instruct a Nottingham criminal defence solicitor

If you know that you are to be interviewed by the police, either by appointment or following arrest, always make sure that you ask for a VHS Fletchers criminal lawyer to represent you.  Our advice is independent of the police and always free of charge.  You can read more about the benefits of having legal advice here.

Legal aid is available for your representation before both the Magistrates’ and Crown Court.  We will advise you on whether you will be entitled and if not investigate other ways of funding your case.

Contact us on 0115 9599550 24 hours a day, 7 days a week for police station advice.  Contact us during office hours for an appointment to see one of our criminal defence lawyers.

Alternatively, use the contact form below.

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Over recent years there has been a vast increase in the number of second hand mobile phones being sold online through such sites as eBay or Gumtree. Such purchases may not be without risk as a client found when charged with making indecent images!

Chesterfield criminal defence solicitor David Gittins recently represented a client who had bought such a phone.  He had been arrested and charged with possessing indecent images on his second hand mobile phone.  David’s client was adamant that he knew nothing about the images.  He maintained he was not aware that they were in his phone.

The year long investigation was followed by proceedings before Chesterfield Magistrates’ Court.  At trial David successfully argued that there was no case to answer.  As a result the charges were dismissed.

Free and independent advice in police interview

David’s client had been arrested in the summer of 2016 for unrelated matters.  His mobile phone was seized by the Police and examined. The Police found a small number of indecent images on the phone.  Understandably they wanted to interview our client about this.

He sought free and independent legal advice from VHS Fletchers and was represented by David during two separate sets of interviews. Our client denied the offence saying he knew nothing about the images.  He was unable to comment about how they got to be in his phone, nor could he help with when they got there.

‘Making indecent images’

As a result the our client could do little else but deny the allegation.  The police and prosecution were not happy with these denials so he was charged to Chesterfield Magistrates’ Court.  The charge was making indecent images between two dates in 2016.

Making indecent images does not necessarily involve taking a photograph.  Downloading an image and making a new digital file is sufficient for a person to be guilty of an offence.  The offence is likely to be treated seriously by the courts and therefore a prison sentence is often imposed.  Although the ‘maker’ of the image is unlikely to have met the child, it is serious because there is a child victim at the end of the chain of ‘makers’ who copy the image.

The Trial

David met with his client on several occasions to take instructions and give advice before trial.  David’s analysis of the technical evidence showed that the prosecution could not show when the images arrived on the phone.   In order to prove the offence the prosecution would have to show that our client was responsible for making indecent images.

The prosecutor could not show that the images were placed on the phone while it was owned by David’s client.  Additionally, there was no evidence that the images had been opened and viewed since our client had owned the phone.

At no point during the prosecution was evidence called to challenge our client’s account that the phone was bought second hand.  The prosecution simply sought to rely on a need by our client to explain the images.  Our client, however, had the benefit of the burden and standard of proof and did not have to prove anything.

After the prosecution case had finished David considered the evidence that the court had heard.  Because of this he decided to make an application of no case to answer.  This can lead to a case being stopped before the defence case.  It is possible in cases where there is no likelihood of a court finding a defendant guilty.

The Magistrates’ in this case agreed with David’s argument and the case against his client was dismissed.

His client was understandably delighted with this result.  He had never been in trouble with the police before so kept his good name.  He will hopefully be able to put the fourteen months that he had serious proceedings hanging over his head behind him.

Free representation with Magistrates’ Court legal aid

Legal aid is available for advice and representation before the Magistrates’ Court. It is dependent upon our clients satisfying the legal aid agency of the merits of their cases and that they qualify on their means.  If it is granted then our advice and representation will be free of charge.

Contact a Chesterfield criminal defence solicitor

Whatever the allegation that you face, you will want to instruct an expert criminal defence solicitor who will analyse the evidence in your case and prepare it accordingly.  In cases such as this, it is important that any gaps in the evidence are identified and exploited to obtain the best result for you.

Please call us on out office number 01246 283000.  Alternatively you can use the contact form below.