Latest news with #CriminalJusticeBill
Daily Mirror
22-05-2025
- Politics
- Daily Mirror
Police could check period tracking app after pregnancy loss under new guidance
New guidance from the National Police Chiefs Council allows police to search your home, seize your phone and check your period tracking apps after a pregnancy loss Guidance quietly released by the National Police Chiefs' Council in January states that women who experience a sudden unexpected pregnancy loss, if they suspect a miscarriage, stillbirth or early labour is the result of an illegal abortion could be investigated by the police. According to the guidance, women could have their homes searched for evidence of abortion drugs and their phones seized for their search history, period tracking apps or fertility apps checked for evidence of whether they were aware of their pregnancy. A spokesperson for the NPCC told The Standard that an investigation would only be initiated where there is credible information to suggest criminal activity. They said: "This would often be because of concerns raised from medical professionals.' They also told The Observer that unexpected pregnancy loss was not 'routinely investigated' and 'any investigation of this nature will always be treated with the utmost sensitivity and compassion'. The Mirror has reached out to the NPCC for comment. The guidance comes in light of the Abortion Act, introduced in 1967, which allows women to legally terminate a pregnancy up to 28 weeks and with the certification of two doctors. The limit was reduced to 24 weeks in 1990. However, abortion is still classed as a criminal offence in Britain and women could be prosecuted under the 1861 Offences Against the Person Act. Under the law, there have only been three conviction achieved, but criminal investigations into women who have suffered from miscarriages or had a premature or a stillbirth have recently increased. Six women have been taken to court over the past two years and over 100 women have been investigated, according to a report by the Independent. Later this year, an amendment to the Criminal Justice Bill, brought by Labour MP Tonia Antoniazzi and signed by over 50 cross-party MPs seeks to decriminalising abortion and ending the prosecution of women who terminate pregnancies after the 24-week limit is due to be voted on in Parliament. But the recent guidance from the NPCC has raised concerns among pro-choice campaigners, abortion charities and period tracking apps alike, who have pushed back on the frightening development. Katie Saxon, Chief Strategic Communications Officer at the British Pregnancy Advisory Service, told the Mirror that this is a "clearest sign yet that women cannot rely on the police, the Crown Prosecution Service, or the courts to protect them." She said: "As an abortion provider, we know how the police treat women suspected of breaking abortion law. But to see it in black and white after years of criticisms of the way this outdated law is enforced is harrowing. 'This guidance was written at the same time as unprecedented threats to global abortion rights and while Parliament was set to consider decriminalising women," Saxon added. 'The only way to stop this is to remove women from the criminal law on abortion.' Saxon also condemned the NPCC's guidance for the police to use period trackers against women and said that it proves just how "detached from reality" the organisation is. Rhiannon White, CEO of period tracking app Clue revealed that they were "shocked and outraged" at the development and assured the Mirror in a statement that they "have never, and will never, disclose private health data to any authority. It's our firm and relentless commitment since our founding over a decade ago." Similarly, Flo 's Vice President of Privacy, Sue Khan told us: 'Women deserve to be able to use technology to learn more about their bodies and their personal health, without fearing their data will be unjustly used or taken in a way they have not agreed upon." If you have been affected by this story, advice and support can be found at Sands (stillbirth and neonatal death charity). You can call them on 0808 164 3332 or email helpline@ You can also find help and support at the Miscarriage Association. You can call them on 01924 200799 or email If you are pregnant or a new mother and you are in crisis, the National Maternal Mental Health Hotline provides free, confidential support 24/7 in English and Spanish. Call or text the hotline at 1-833-TLC-MAMA (1-833-852-6262).
Yahoo
14-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
‘I gave birth three months early – then police investigated me over an illegal abortion'
Sammy was being ferried into an ambulance by paramedics – after giving mouth-to-mouth resuscitation to her newborn baby – when she realised there were around eight police officers in her living room. The mother, in her thirties, had just given birth at home to a baby boy who arrived over three months early, weighing just one pound and seven ounces – little more than a bag of sugar. Police had arrived to assist her in giving lifesaving CPR. But Sammy* says that, while in shock from the traumatic and unexpected birth – and with her baby still fighting for his life – she suddenly found herself at the centre of a criminal investigation. This would become a devastating 51-week ordeal, triggered by England's 164-year-old law criminalising abortion, despite the fact that she hadn't actually had one. 'My front room was full of police officers – there must have been about eight. Then out on the street, my husband said there were two ambulances, two unmarked police cars, and a regular police car. I just thought: why?' Sammy has decided to retell her horrific experience as the issue of illegal abortion in the UK reached parliament this week. Tonia Antoniazzi, Labour MP for Gower, has put forward an amendment to the Criminal Justice Bill to remove the criminal aspect of ending abortions illegally, to bring England and Wales in line with Scotland and Northern Ireland. MPs are expected to vote on the issue this summer. In an interview with The Independent, Sammy said: 'They were following my husband around – he wasn't allowed to be alone. I was at the hospital, not knowing what was happening at home. Then, they told my son he had to leave. He had 10 minutes to get his things and get out.' According to Sammy, that day police seized all their electronic devices, including two Xboxes, cordoned off their home with crime scene tape, and arrested her husband when he returned to pick up clean clothes – 'under suspicion of procuring a miscarriage by instrument or tablets'. They dug through bins and held on to her placenta for months. The next morning, when she was discharged from hospital while her baby fought for his life in an incubator, she says she was questioned by police about whether she had attempted to end the pregnancy illegally. Sammy told police she had only explored the option of a termination and researched abortion pills online, but had been told she was too far along in the pregnancy to go ahead with it. 'I was open and honest from the get-go, but we were treated like criminals,' she says, visibly distressed. 'When they took me to the police station for questioning – I cried through most of it and just said, 'No comment.'' Her husband, released on bail, was initially barred from seeing or even communicating with Sammy or their baby. Even when that restriction was eased, the parents were only allowed to visit their new son under police supervision. This went on for 51 weeks. Shortly before the baby's first birthday, the investigation was finally dropped, and Sammy and her husband were cleared. But the damage had been done. 'No other woman should have to go through that. Abortion should be decriminalised,' she says. Sammy's story, though horrifying, is not an anomaly. She is one of more than 100 women whom rights groups believe have been investigated by police in recent years under the same 164-year-old Offences Against the Person Act which Ranee Thakar, the president of the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (RCOG), tells The Independent is 'the oldest healthcare law still in existence.' Some women have even had their children removed. In fact, there has been an unprecedented surge in convictions related to abortions and pregnancy losses under this legislation. Six women have appeared in court over the past two years charged with ending their own pregnancies. Prior to that, only three convictions had been reported for illegal abortion since the law was introduced in 1861. There is a common misconception that abortion is legal in the UK. The 1967 Abortion Act legalised terminations in England, Wales, and Scotland, now up to 24 weeks, provided two doctors sign off that continuing the pregnancy would pose a risk to the woman's physical or mental health. In the wake of the pandemic, that was amended to allow eligible women in the first 10 weeks of pregnancy to have a medical abortion at home. Outside of those bounds, women are at risk of jail – which is where rights groups say the problem lies. Just this week, Nicola Packer – who endured a four-year investigation and public trial – was unanimously acquitted by a jury at Isleworth Crown Court in southwest London. She had been accused of 'unlawfully administering to herself a poison or other noxious thing' with the 'intent to procure a miscarriage'. In the wake of her acquittal, she told The Independent the process had been deeply traumatic – critics said she faced public shaming at the hands of prosecutors. 'The stress for more than four years was immense, and it was impossible to live normally,' Ms Packer tells The Independent. 'Although it's a relief that I was finally believed and it's all over, it's going to be very hard to ever trust the NHS and police again.' Jonathan Lord, the clinician in charge of Ms Packer's care and co-chair of the RCOG abortion taskforce, slammed the process as a 'vindictive and brutal prosecution in which the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) weaponised victim-shaming'. Lord, who said he has had to help several women and teenagers who have been investigated by the police, says it is 'incredibly traumatic, where every element of your most personal life is exposed, your phone and computer are taken and searched for messages, images, menstrual apps, and internet searches'. 'Even in those who are never charged, most have suffered long-term mental health issues and post-traumatic stress disorder and say they cannot trust the NHS or police again.' The situation is now so urgent that 60 MPs, multiple Royal Colleges (including the RCOG), and numerous healthcare professionals are backing a cross-party amendment to the Criminal Justice Bill that would remove women from the criminal law in relation to ending their own pregnancies and bring England and Wales. The amendment was laid in Parliament on Tuesday night by Ms Antoniazzi. She tells The Independent that an increasing number of women have been subjected to 'utterly deplorable' criminal investigations for a 'crime' that does not even apply in two other parts of the UK: Scotland and Northern Ireland. 'The harm inflicted upon these women is lifelong and profound. This cannot continue,' she says, adding that it particularly impacts vulnerable women. The Royal College's Dr Thakar said one of the biggest concerns is the chilling effect the law could have on women and healthcare providers. The RCOG was so alarmed by the rise in investigations that it issued new guidance to medical professionals last January, urging them not to report women to police if they suspect a pregnancy may have been ended illegally. 'Many women may become too afraid to seek help, fearing criminal consequences. Abortion care is a safe, essential part of healthcare. By criminalising it, we make a safe procedure unsafe because women avoid seeking help when they need it,' she continues. 'They should be treated with care and compassion, without judgment or fear of imprisonment. Otherwise, the result is silence and suffering.' Another backer of the law change is the British Pregnancy Advisory Service (BPAS), which told The Independent that women 'are being arrested straight from the hospital ward, their homes searched, and their children taken away'. 'This cannot continue. Members of Parliament have a moral duty to decriminalise abortion for women and end the threat of police, prosecutions, and imprisonment once and for all,' Katie Saxon, chief strategic communications officer at BPAS, said. It comes amid a groundswell of support for change. In a separate initiative launched this month, a cross-party group of MPs led by Stella Creasy called for abortion to be protected as a human right in England and Wales, following a similar, successful campaign in Northern Ireland in 2019. Other countries have enshrined a human right to access abortion, Creasy said at the time, adding that now is the time to act as 'politicians are using women's bodies as their battlefield'. Last month, campaigners spearheaded by teacher Gemma Clark and supported by BPAS, delivered a petition to Downing Street that was signed by over 100,000 UK residents calling on parliament to reform the abortion law. It has triggered a debate in parliament expected in the coming weeks The Independent asked the CPS about the devastating impact the surge in investigations and convictions was having on women involved – particularly in the wake of Nicola Packer's trial, during which personal details were shared in court. A spokesperson defended the move, saying that information was shared 'only to establish the fact of when she may have fallen pregnant, and her understanding of the gestation period'. 'Our prosecutors exercise the greatest care when considering complex and traumatic cases such as this one,' a spokesperson added. A government spokesperson, meanwhile, said that 'All women have access to safe and legal abortions on the NHS' and that 'decisions to prosecute – within existing legislation – are for the CPS and are incredibly rare.' In Sammy's case, the relevant police force acknowledged in a statement to The Independent the 'particular sensitivities of this case' but said the initial investigation was undertaken 'to safeguard all involved'. They defended the action to investigate and the duration: 'This was a complex investigation, requiring extensive forensic and medical evidence, and unfortunately these kinds of enquiries take time.' But Sammy says she fears that other women will 'lie and hide' if they find themselves in her position unless the law changes, due to fear of being prosecuted. During her investigation, she says she spent nearly a year 'thinking every little car door that slams is the police coming to take me and my husband away.' Now she is trying to piece her life back together, while still worrying the police might come after her again.'I was open and honest with them… that openness and honesty got me nowhere. I got treated like a criminal when I am not one. 'Look at the outcome. All we got was an apology and a message that the investigation was dropped.'The law needs to be changed. I wouldn't wish this upon anyone.' *Name changed
Business Mayor
29-04-2025
- Politics
- Business Mayor
Westminster inquiry calls for evidence on joint enterprise
Solicitors are being urged to submit evidence to a landmark review of joint enterprise amid long-standing concerns that the common law doctrine unfairly targets young black men and people from other minority groups. The Westminster Commission on Joint Enterprise, set up last year by the all-party parliamentary group on miscarriages of justice, is probing the law, practice and policy of joint enterprise, which allows multiple people to be prosecuted and punished for the same crime. The commission is being overseen by Labour peer Lord Woodley (the trade unionist Tony Woodley) and co-chaired by law lecturers Dr Louise Hewitt, founder of the Innocent Project London, and Dr Bharat Malkani, a specialist on race and justice. The commission has been holding oral evidence sessions but is now seeking written evidence on how joint enterprise on the purpose and effectiveness of joint enterprise, how it is applied in practice and perceived benefits of the current legal framework. 'This can also extend to concerns raised about joint enterprise, which include proportionality and overcriminalisation, as well as the ways in which the doctrine has been used against ethnic minorities, women, children, and those who are neurologically diverse,' the APPG said. According to data analysis of a Crown Prosecution Service joint enterprise pilot in 2023, black people represent 4% of the population but 30% of defendants in the CPS caseload. White people represent 82% of the population but 39% of defendants in the CPS caseload. Labour MP Kim Johnson sought an amendment to the Criminal Justice Bill last year to tighten up the law on joint enterprise, so that only those who make a 'significant contribution' are held criminally liable. Johnson said: 'This is an opportunity for the commission to hear from all stakeholders – academics, policymakers, legal professionals, campaigners, community groups, and those with lived experience, including victims of the injustice of joint enterprise as well as those who have been victims of crime.' Submissions should be no more than two sides of A4 and emailed to commission co-chair Louise Hewitt at by 1 July.
Yahoo
25-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Cyclists who kill could face life sentence
Cyclists who kill pedestrians by acting dangerously on the road could face life imprisonment under a proposed change to the law. Currently, cycling offenders can be imprisoned for no more than two years under an 1861 law originally intended for drivers of horse-drawn carriages. A government amendment to the Crime and Policing Bill - which is currently going through Parliament - would see cycling offences brought in line with driving offences, the Department for Transport (DfT) said. The changes would also mean serious injury caused by dangerous cycling - or death by careless or inconsiderate cycling - could incur punishments of five years in jail, fines, or both. A serious injury caused by careless or inconsiderate cycling would result in a two-year sentence, a fine or both under the proposed changes. The government estimates that of 1,600 deaths on UK roads last year, four were caused by cyclists. A DfT spokesperson said updating the more than 160-year-old legislation would "ensure that the tiny minority who recklessly disregard others face the full force of the law". They added: "Dangerous cycling is completely unacceptable, and the safety of our roads is a key priority for this government." The amendment to the Crime and Policing Bill - which is currently at the committee stage - will be debated by Parliament in "due course", the spokesperson said. Under the previous government, Conservative MP Sir Iain Duncan Smith campaigned to amend another bill - the Criminal Justice Bill - to hold cyclists accountable for reckless behaviour. He cited campaigning by Matthew Briggs, whose wife, Kim, died from head injuries after a collision with a cyclist in 2016. Charlie Alliston - who was riding a fixed-gear bike with no front brakes - was cleared of manslaughter and found guilty of causing bodily harm by "wanton or furious driving". Mr Briggs told the BBC that he felt his years of campaigning was on the "edge of a breakthrough", but that he would remain "cautiously optimistic" until the amendment became law. "I feel delight not just for me, but the families of people who have died since Kim died, who have all kept the up pressure, politely, consistently, calmly... to extract something good out of something tragic," he said on Friday. He called it "incomprehensible" that cycling is "literally lawless" under an "old-fashioned law" not designed for modern road usage. A government source close to Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander told the BBC that changing the law "at the first opportunity" was "definitely personal" to her as she was Mr Briggs' MP when his wife was killed. Mr Briggs said Alexander had shown "enormous personal kindness" over the years, and "courage and commitment" in going up against a "strong" cycling lobby to push for the change. The government source said: "While this is an important victory for those families, 1,600 people were killed on our roads last year and just four caused by cyclists. "We need to address that too and will be bringing forward a road safety strategy before the end of the year." Death by dangerous cycling set to become offence 'Death by dangerous cycling' law considered
BBC News
25-04-2025
- Politics
- BBC News
Cyclists who kill could face life sentence in proposed law change
Cyclists who kill pedestrians by acting dangerously on the road could face life imprisonment under a proposed change to the cycling offenders can be imprisoned for no more than two years under an 1861 law originally intended for drivers of horse-drawn carriages.A government amendment to the Crime and Policing Bill - which is currently going through Parliament - would see cycling offences brought in line with driving offences, the Department for Transport (DfT) changes would also mean serious injury caused by dangerous cycling - or death by careless or inconsiderate cycling - could incur punishments of five years in jail, fines, or both. A serious injury caused by careless or inconsiderate cycling would result in a two-year sentence, a fine or both under the proposed government estimates that of 1,600 deaths on UK roads last year, four were caused by cyclists.A DfT spokesperson said updating the more than 160-year-old legislation would "ensure that the tiny minority who recklessly disregard others face the full force of the law".They added: "Dangerous cycling is completely unacceptable, and the safety of our roads is a key priority for this government."The amendment to the Crime and Policing Bill - which is currently at the committee stage - will be debated by Parliament in "due course", the spokesperson said. Under the previous government, Conservative MP Sir Iain Duncan Smith campaigned to amend another bill - the Criminal Justice Bill - to hold cyclists accountable for reckless cited campaigning by Matthew Briggs, whose wife, Kim, died from head injuries after a collision with a cyclist in Alliston - who was riding a fixed-gear bike with no front brakes - was cleared of manslaughter and found guilty of causing bodily harm by "wanton or furious driving". Mr Briggs told BBC Radio 4's Today programme last year that he wanted to "try and stop another family having to go through what we have had to go through".His campaign welcomed Friday's news, writing on X: "After nine years of campaigning and a few false starts, it looks like we might finally be there!"A government source close to Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander told the BBC that changing the law "at the first opportunity" was "definitely personal" to her as she was Mr Briggs' MP when his wife was said: "While this is an important victory for those families, 1,600 people were killed on our roads last year and just four caused by cyclists. "We need to address that too and will be bringing forward a road safety strategy before the end of the year."
