Call for trials law shake-up

MPs say the law should be overhauled

The law should be changed to allow people to be tried in court twice for the same offence, says a committee of MPs.

The move could potentially allow the youths cleared of murdering teenager Stephen Lawrence to be retried, the Home Affairs Committee says.

Offences affected

murder

manslaughter

rape

causing grievous bodily harm

robbery

aggravated burglary

arson

supplying class A drugs

The law change would apply only to serious cases carrying life sentences, such as murder and rape, when new evidence was uncovered.

As the law stands, a person cannot be tried twice for the same offence - the 'double jeopardy' rule.

Tory leader William Hague's proposals for reforming the law caught Labour on the back foot when he put them forward last month.

Now the Labour-dominated Commons Home Affairs Select Committee has also concluded the law should be reconsidered.

Pressure for reform

Labour has put the issue under review, with the Law Commission expected to give its verdict on the double jeopardy rule at the end of the year.

The Macpherson report into the racist murder of Stephen Lawrence has also called for a review of the law.

Neil Acourt, Luke Knight and Gary Dobson were found not guilty of murdering Stephen on the orders of the judge during a private prosecution brought by his family four years ago.

There are currently 35 cases where the police investigation has been closed because the offenders have been acquitted, the National Crime Faculty told MPs.

The committee said changes were needed in the interests of justice for victims and their families.

Scientific advances

At the moment, wrongful convictions could be quashed but not wrongful acquittals, its report said.

And scientific advances, particularly in DNA-testing, mean strong evidence can be uncovered long after an initial acquittal, leaving victims feeling cheated.

The Director of Public Prosecutions in England and Wales, David Calvert-Smith, also backs reform.

But civil liberties campaigners claim that changing the law could lead to harassment of those who have already undergone trials and been acquitted.

John Wadham, director of civil rights group Liberty, warned the proposals would lead to innocent people being placed behind bars while doing little to tackle crime.

"The proposals are likely to lead to miscarriages of justice or, at the least, innocent people spending time in custody," he said.

"The issue has already become a political football yet the proposals will have no real impact on crime."

Senior police officers from the Superintendents' Association welcomed the report but said suspects should be liable to face a retrial in less serious cases as well.