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Derby crime solicitor Nick Wright
At the beginning of July 2019, the Derbyshire Criminal Justice Board met at HMP Foston Hall at the invitation of the Governor, Andrea Black. This is the local women’s prison. As a member of the Board, Derby crime solicitor Nick Wright was invited too.
The tour of HMP Foston Hall showed the rehabilitative facilities provided for the 400 or so inmates. While prisoners remain just that, prisoners, the prison ethos is that the fact of being there is the punishment.
As a result, great efforts are made to help help rehabilitate offenders. Prisoners are given the opportunity to work, encouraged by the ability to earn a small wage to be spent in the prison.
They grow vegetables for use in the kitchens, the quality of some of the vegetable beds rivalling anything at Chatsworth House or on Gardeners World.
Alternatively, prisoners are able to work in a facility producing garments for use in the prison system. This provides them with a skill which can be used to gain employment on release with the training that is provided.
HMP Foston Hall also works with the RSPCA. As a result there are many animals cared for by prisoners. These include donkeys, guinea pigs, hamsters and lots of different varieties of birds. Animals do not know or judge those who care for them. Offenders are given the opportunity to care for something and receive positive feedback in return.
The board also had a presentation from a transgender inmate who was fully transgender. She was very erudite and helped the heads of organisations present gain a much better understanding of the issues involve with LGBT+ people, particularly when prisoners.
Finally, the most trusted inmates have the use of a specially converted house used for family visits for up to six people. Visits here can last for up to six hours. Visitors also have access to a coffee shop, ‘Fosta Coffee’.
Nick was impressed with the work that was being done towards rehabilitation at HMP Foston Hall. While we will continue to try our best to avoid a prison sentence for our female clients who might otherwise end up at this prison, this information might assist them to know what to expect.
Whatever the quality of the prison that an inmate is in, problems can always arise. We have a specialist prison law department. You can read more about it here.
If you have a problem and require help then please use the enquiry form below:
Contact - Prison Law
All posts by Andrew Wesley/h3>
Recently, the high profile prosecution of ex-police officer David Duckenfield relating to the Hillsborough tragedy ended without reaching a conclusion. A number of papers reported that there was a hung jury. So, what does that mean?
In an ideal world, a jury will reach a clear conclusion by either convicting or acquitting the defendant.
Where a case retains the original 12 jurors at least 10 must agree on the verdict. If the numbers fall short, for example, with 8 wanting to acquit and 4 wanting to convict, that will not be an acceptable verdict.
If the jury indicates that they will not be able to reach a verdict in accordance with the law then then that jury will need to be discharged.
In legal terms, this is often referred to as a hung jury.
What happens if there is a hung jury?
The prosecution can apply to have the defendant tried again. This will be the outcome in most cases.
The decision is one for the trial Judge who will consider whether or not it is in the interests of justice for a retrial to take place.
Typically, the court considers questions which include (but are not limited to) whether:
the alleged offence is sufficiently serious to justify a retrial
if re-convicted, the appellant would be likely to serve a significant period or further period in custody
the appellant’s age and health
the wishes of the victim of the alleged offence.
If prosecutorial misconduct is alleged then other factors will come into play, analogous with whether it is an abuse of process to allow a retrial.
In most cases, the defence will not be able to properly resist the application. We would, however, always carefully consider all relevant factors and object if able to.
What happens if a second jury still cannot reach a verdict?
The usual practice in this scenario is for the prosecution to offer no evidence, although there are rare circumstances where a further retrial could take place.
The offence of causing death by dangerous driving carries a maximum prison sentence of 14 years, but what happens if 4 deaths are caused during a single incident? Does the total rise to a maximum of 56 years?
The answer to that question is no, the maximum remains at 14 years.
There is nothing wrong in principle with consecutive prison sentences. Had the defendants committed 4 offences over 4 days, causing one death on each occasion, the theoretical maximum open to the Judge would actually have been 56 years, or 4 times 14 years.
So, why was it not possible in this case?
Consecutive sentences not possible
The Judge was obliged to follow the case of R v Jaynesh Chadusama [2018] EWCA Crim 2867 which led to the Judge observing:
“I am compelled to take 14 years imprisonment as the maximum sentence open to me where multiple fatalities arise from a single incident of dangerous driving.”
The Judge did, however, have the following to say, which indicated his general unease as to the state of the law:
“Before passing sentence, I wish to make this observation. It is my intention to refer these sentencing remarks to the Secretary of State for Transport. I am aware that HM Government has embarked upon a review of extant road traffic legislation including sentencing. It is not for me to recommend changes in the law. I simply invite those who have that responsibility, namely the Secretary of State, to consider the following point.
It may be worthy of consideration whether a court, when there are multiple deaths arising from a single episode of dangerous driving, particularly when the dangerous driving is of an exceptionally serious kind – as in this case, should have power to impose a higher level of custodial sentence than would be permitted by the current law.
I merely call this case to the attention of the Secretary of State for consideration.
It is not for me to make this observation, but there may be some who feel that Parliament may wish to revisit the issue of the powers available to a court when sentencing in an exceptionally serious case of this kind.
I repeat what I said earlier – the sentence I pass today is governed by the law which is operational today. I am bound by that law and I shall pass sentence in accordance with it.”
Will the law change?
The Attorney General in the days following this case indicated that a change in sentencing policy is likely. This will be more easily achieved not by trying to reverse the rule in R v Jaynesh Chadusama but by simply increasing the maximum penalty available to one of life imprisonment.
It is also likely that we will see increases in sentences where death is caused by driving, and perhaps even in the relatively new offence covering the causing of serious injury.
Contact an expert road traffic law solicitor
If you are arrested or know that the police wish to speak to you about any offending involving dangerous driving then make sure you insist on your right to free and independent legal advice. As you can see, the courts will always take such offences seriously upon conviction.
We have offices across the East Midlands and will happily travel across the country to provide representation for all football related offences.
VHS Fletchers offices across the East Midlands
Alternatively you can contact us using the form below.
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All posts by Andrew Wesley/h3>
Many people face very lengthy court proceedings, and it is therefore hardly unusual that on occasion a person may not be too ill to attend court.
Despite this fact, courts are sceptical of alleged illness. Unless the rules are followed in close detail, a defendant who does not attend faces the serious prospect of being arrested by the police and taken to court in custody. This may involve a stay in police cells over the weekend, so it is essential that you understand what you need to do.
Too ill to attend court? Let us know straight away.
The first step is to inform your solicitor as soon as you are able.
All of our office numbers can be called at any hour of the day or night. This will allow you to contact us before the office opens so that you can inform us what is happening.
In almost all cases, if you do not need to see a doctor, the court is unlikely to accept your illness as an excuse not to attend court.
It will, of course, depend on the exact circumstances. As a result it is essential to speak to us and obtain advice as to what is the best course of action.
A doctor will be able to issue you with a sick note. This is not, however, necessarily the end of the matter, and the opinion of a doctor does not bind a court.
Doctors have been issued with guidance concerning medical notes for court non-attendance, but a busy practitioner may very well miss the detail.
The Criminal Practice Direction sets out the following minimum requirements:
The date on which the medical practitioner examined you;
The exact nature of your ailments;
If it is not self-evident, why the ailment prevents you attending court;
An indication as to when you are likely to be able to attend court, or a date when the current certificate expires.
Circumstances where the court may find a medical certificate unsatisfactory include:
Where the certificate indicates that the defendant is unfit to attend work (rather than to attend court);
Where the nature of the defendant’s ailment (e.g. a broken arm) does not appear to be capable of preventing his attendance at court;
Where the defendant is certified as suffering from stress/anxiety/depression and there is no indication of the defendant recovering within a realistic timescale.
Contact your criminal law solicitor
You will have information from us about who your solicitor is. All of our office numbers will be answered out of hours to deal with emergencies like this.
Few people would disagree with the suggestion that sentencing law in England and Wales is a complete mess. The provisions that govern how a defendant is to be sentenced are both complex and disparate and to be found across a significant number of statutes. The proposal is to replace the variety of provisions with a new sentencing code.
Why does this matter?
Research has shown that thousands of sentencing errors are made each year. Many end up going completely undetected. Sometimes the mistakes make little difference in practice, but often the failure leads to unlawful sentences being imposed.
The complexity of the statutory provisions is only one consideration. There is also a large body of case law that mjust be taken into account. Again, we see many errors, most notably concerning protective orders where conditions imposed are often draconian and unnecessary.
Sentencing errors can lead to a failure to protect victims as well as unlawful or inappropriate sentences for defendants. Any appeal proceedings that follow to put matters right will be costly. Ironically the Court of Appeal often makes mistakes itself.
To achieve this, a two-stage process will take place:
Minor amendments to existing statutes will be made to ‘tidy up’ the statute book.
Immediately afterwards the provisions will be consolidated into one Act of Parliament (‘the sweep’).
This clean sweep of law will then lead to a single consolidated statutory provision resulting in a sentencing code that can be further amended in the future.
It is important to note that this procedure is a consolidating procedure Apart from minor changes to legislation there will be no material change to existing law. There will be no increases to the existing sentences available to courts.
Will the sentencing code make a difference?
Given the effect of this is merely to move sentencing law into one single statute, it is a reasonable question to ask whether this will make a difference.
The Law Commission carried out extensive testing of the proposals. It was demonstrated that having a single reference point for sentencing leads to fewer errors. Errors will continue to be made, for all manner of reasons, but we should see a massive reduction.
When will these changes happen?
The first piece of legislation was laid in the House of Lords last week, and the provisions could be law in a matter of months. Much will depend on the legislative timetable and the uncertainty of the political situation at the present time.
When the relevant legislation is enacted, there will need to be a period of training for lawyers and judges before the new statute takes effect so it seems unlikely that the provisions will come into effect before mid 2020 at the earliest.
What happens until then?
Until that time we will continue to be alert on your behalf.
Our lawyers take great care to ensure lawful and proportionate sentences are passed and will not hesitate to take corrective action where that is required.
We prefer to work hard to avoid mistakes in the first place to avoid problems later. As a result all of our advocates are highly trained in the complexities of sentencing law. Our ethos is that we must ‘get it right first-time’.
If, however, you believe that your sentence before either the Magistrates’ Court or Crown Court was unlawful or excessive then please contact us immediately.
Contact a specialist criminal lawyer
The earlier we are involved in your case, the greater the opportunity for us to ensure that everything goes right at each step of your case.
If you are arrested or know that the police wish to speak to you about a criminal offence then make sure you insist on your right to free and independent legal advice.
