Latest news with #criminaljustice
France 24
a day ago
- Politics
- France 24
Egypt legal reform raises fears over right to fair trial
The legislation, currently awaiting approval by President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, is being promoted by the government as a step toward streamlining legal procedures, from arrest to trial. Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty has told the UN Human Rights Council it would bring a "legislative revolution to criminal justice" in Egypt. Ihab al-Tamawy, the head of the parliamentary subcommittee charged with drafting the new code, told AFP it "introduces a set of new guarantees" on Egypt's notorious pretrial detention system, as well as the role of the public prosecution. But critics say the bill risks codifying repressive practices that have long eroded due process in the country. According to rights defenders, the law expands the powers of police and prosecutors and limits the role of defence lawyers, undermining judicial oversight and the right to a fair trial. In one of the new provisions that have come under scrutiny, public prosecutors will be able to order travel bans without a warrant "in cases of emergency". The law will also allow police to enter homes without an arrest warrant in cases of "distress" or "danger", which are not clearly defined. In April, UN rights chief Volker Turk "raised concerns" over the law and called on Sisi to "consider carefully" before signing it into force, "to ensure that it fully complies with Egypt's international human rights obligations". Right to fair trial Egypt currently ranks 135th out of 142 countries on the World Justice Project's Rule of Law Index. In the latest UN review of its rights record in January, Egypt faced accusations of "systemic and widespread" rights violations, including torture, enforced disappearances and unfair trials. In recent years, Egypt has been accused of formalising into normal law exceptional measures previously allowed in states of emergency. According to prominent human rights lawyer Khaled Ali, the law "does not truly combat corruption, expands the powers granted to the police and prosecution and undermines the role of defence lawyers," which he said is "essential to a fair trial". Along with 15 other independent lawyers, Ali submitted 176 proposed amendments to the law, none of which were adopted. Mahmoud Shalaby, Egypt researcher at Amnesty International, told AFP the bill "codifies practices that were already taking place outside the boundaries of the law, and grants them legitimacy in an attempt to improve Egypt's image". According to Karim Ennarah, research director at the Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights (EIPR), the new changes will come at the expense of investigations, defendants and their lawyers. Under the new law, defence lawyers can be denied access to case files and witnesses -- "practices already common, but that will now become legal," Ennarah said. 'Recycling' The law will also expand remote trials, which Ennarah describes as "rushed" virtual hearings, where dozens of jailed defendants are corralled behind a screen on a video call with a judge. Remote trials "undermine two fundamental principles of a fair trial", according to Ennarah, namely "the defendant's right to meet privately with their lawyer, and their right to appear before a judge" to assess any harm or abuse inflicted upon them. Egypt is routinely criticised for the widespread use of pretrial detention, a phenomenon that proponents say is addressed under the new law. While the maximum period for remand detention will be reduced from 24 to 18 months, Amnesty International has warned the law "provides no safeguards against abusive prolonged pretrial detention". According to Shalaby, many of Egypt's estimated tens of thousands of political prisoners are victims of a practice known as "recycling" detainees. Under the much-maligned "revolving door policy", prisoners are often handed new charges instead of being released, restarting the clock on their remand period. Another issue, he says, is that when the law goes into effect, citizens will no longer be able to sue "in case of violations during their arrest or detention". In 2024, EIPR documented 10 cases of torture-related deaths in detention facilities. © 2025 AFP
Telegraph
2 days ago
- Politics
- Telegraph
Criminal justice in ‘state of national emergency', Lord Hermer told
The criminal justice system is in a 'state of national emergency' and needs urgent action to clear backlogs, Lord Hermer has been told. Anthony Rogers, the chief inspector of the prosecution service, wrote to the Attorney General saying that far-reaching proposals to scrap jury trials for thousands of defendants would take time to introduce, and radical solutions were needed right away. 'The criminal justice system is in a state of national emergency and delays are unsustainable,' said Mr Rogers, who is the watchdog for the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) and reports to Lord Hermer. He backed the proposals made in the independent review by Sir Brian Leveson, the former appeal court judge, to scale back jury trials. But Mr Rogers warned: 'They will take time to implement and will not address the immediate issue as backlogs continue to increase daily as more cases are received than finalised.' Crown court backlogs have hit a record 76,000 cases, with some current victims told they will have to wait until 2029 before their perpetrator is brought to trial. The Telegraph understands that Mr Rogers is proposing that senior judges should give priority to the most serious cases when listing them for trial in crown courts. This is likely to entail new fast-track lists, running in parallel to cases that are taking as long as four years to come to trial. Mr Rogers warned those in the legal profession opposed to the removal of jury trials risked extending the crisis in the courts. 'Calls from the legal profession to maintain the status quo and throw more money at the problem are unhelpful. It does nothing to solve the serious issues at hand,' he said. 'Everyone needs to recognise that if we don't move to act now all will be lost. Holding on to long established principles and resisting change and innovation will further diminish the system that so many rely on. 'The world is a far different place post austerity and Covid, and all actors in the criminal justice system – from Government and judiciary to the Bar – need to implement radical solutions today, or our great legal system will no longer be the envy of the world.' Defendants to lose right to jury trial In his report, Sir Brian proposed that suspected sex offenders and drug dealers should be among thousands of defendants stripped of the right to a jury trial. Under plans for a 'once in a generation' reform of the courts, his review recommended that defendants accused of 220 offences should no longer have an automatic right to be tried by a jury of their peers. Sir Brian said restricting the historical right to a jury trial – which has its origins in the 1215 Magna Carta – was necessary because criminal justice was 'too broken' and a 'radical and essential package of measures to prevent total collapse of the system' was required. He said ditching juries would mean simpler, speedier and cheaper justice, saving the equivalent of 9,000 court sitting days a year. His report comes as the backlog of Crown Court cases has risen to a record 77,000, with trials delayed as far ahead as 2029. In his annual report, the chief inspector said inspections of the CPS had revealed a 'concerning level' of geographical variation. Further work was being done in the hope of finding why the quality of decision-making was significantly worse in some parts of England and Wales than in others. However, Mr Rogers welcomed Lord Hermer securing £39m to help the Serious Fraud Office recruit staff to deal effectively with the prosecutor's disclosure obligations.
The Guardian
2 days ago
- Politics
- The Guardian
Labour says Reform UK ‘trying to divide communities' ahead of Farage speech on crime
Update: Date: 2025-07-21T08:19:51.000Z Title: Farage's plans to reform criminal justice system criticised ahead of speech Content: Good morning and welcome to our live coverage of UK politics. Nigel Farage is to lay out plans that he claims would end all early release schemes for sex offenders and serious violent offenders if he were to become prime minister. In a speech in London later today, the Reform UK leader will also reportedly promise to build 30,000 new prison places to tackle the overcrowding crisis, appoint 30,000 more police officers within five years and deport 10,400 foreign offenders currently in British jails. He has not said how these policies will be funded and will likely face questions on how he would negotiate return agreements for foreign offenders. Some of his promises – like sending some of the most serious criminals to overseas jails, including in El Salavdor – will also likely face serious legal obstacles if they were ever realised. Farage, whose Reform party is leading many polls, was quoted by the Daily Telegraph as having said: Reform UK will be the toughest party on law and order this country has ever seen. We will cut crime in half. We will take back control of our streets, we will take back control of our courts and prisons. We are expecting more details on Reform's plans at around 11am. Reform's attempt to woo voters with a tough on crime message stands in contrast to the proposals recently suggested by Sir Brian Leveson, a former senior judge who was asked by the Lord Chancellor to come up with ways to reduce the backlog of cases in the criminal courts. Recommendations in the report included increased use of out-of-court resolutions, greater use of rehabilitation programmes and health intervention programmes and increasing the maximum reduction for entering a guilty plea at the first opportunity from 33% to 40%. Diana Johnson, the policing minister, said that Reform is not serious about implementing real changes to the criminal justice system as the party 'voted to try to block measures to crack down on knife crime, antisocial behaviour, shop theft and child sexual abuse'. 'They should focus more on practical solutions to support our police, combat crime, deliver justice for victims of crime, rather than chasing headlines, spouting slogans and trying to divide communities,' she added. Here is the agenda for the day. 09.45am: Sir Jon Cunliffe, Independent Water Commission chair, to give speech. 11am: Nigel Farage to make a speech in London on the criminal justice system. 13:00pm: Orgreave Truth and Justice Campaign press conference in Sheffield. 14.30pm: Keir Starmer to appear at the Liaison Committee.
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Criminals plotting mass killings to be detained earlier under new law
Police and courts are to be given powers to deal with suspects believed to be planning mass killings, the Home Secretary has confirmed. Yvette Cooper said the new tools will enable the criminal justice system to "close the gap" between terror suspects, who face life imprisonment for planning attacks, and non-ideological individuals. Police will be empowered to apprehend them before attacks are carried out. In an interview, Ms Cooper told BBC Radio 4's State of Terror series: 'There is a gap in the law around the planning of mass attacks that can be just as serious (as terrorism) in their implications for communities, their impact, the devastation that they can cause and the seriousness of the crime. 'We will tighten legislation so that that is taken as seriously as terrorism.' Home Secretary Yvette Cooper said police would be given powers to apprehend suspects before they carry out attacks (PA Wire) She said legislation would be similar to that which allows police to arrest terror suspects for steps taken to prepare for an attack, such as research, which is not currently available without links to an ideological cause. Ms Cooper added: 'We've seen cases of growing numbers of teenagers potentially radicalising themselves online and seeing all kinds of extremist material online in their bedrooms. 'We have to make sure that the systems can respond while not taking our eye off the ball of the more long-standing ideological threats.' Southport attacker Axel Rudakubana, who killed three girls at a dance class, is among the individuals who could have been covered by the legislation. Axel Rudakubana was given a life sentence in January, with a minimum term of 52 years – one of the highest minimum terms on record – for murdering Alice da Silva Aguiar, nine, Bebe King, six, and Elsie Dot Stancombe, seven, at a Taylor Swift-themed dance class in Southport on July 29 last year. The 18-year-old also attempted to murder eight other children, who cannot be named for legal reasons, as well as class instructor Leanne Lucas and businessman John Hayes.
Washington Post
4 days ago
- Washington Post
Former robber turned law professor in D.C. found guilty of assaulting wife
Shon Hopwood spent nearly 11 years in prison for robbing five banks in Nebraska in the late 1990s. After his release, he resurrected himself, graduating from law school, joining the law faculty at Georgetown University in 2017 and becoming a White House adviser on criminal justice reform. Now Hopwood, 50, faces another stint in prison. He was convicted Friday of assaulting his wife, ignoring a judge's order to stay away from her and trying to get her to drop the charges against him.
