Book Review: The Crime & Disorder Act 1998: A Guide for Practitioners
| DOI | 10.1177/002201839906300209 |
| Published date | 01 April 1999 |
| Date | 01 April 1999 |
| Subject Matter | Book Review |
BOOI( REVIEW
The Crime &Disorder
Ad
1998: AGuide
for
Practitioners
David
E. Scanlan. London: Callow Publishing. £30 SB
Likemany of its predecessors,the Actdoes not providethe means to deal
with many of society'sills.
It
should not be 'oversold'; nor should expecta-
tions be raised too high; people should not be given a
false
sense of a quick
solution, in the belief that a simple law here or there will change things.
There speaks apractitioner,
rather
than
apolitician,
and
it is
the
practical
implications of this substantial legislative measure
that
the
author
tack-
les
with
obvious relish,
though
never
neglecting the ethos
and
political
imperative for its genesis. The
book
explores
the
great
themes
of
the
Act:
youth
crime; crime
and
disorder; racist crime; delay; sex offenders,
violent offenders
and
drug misusing offenders;
and
sentencing. Each of
these themes
are
examined
by
the
author
with
meticulous care. The
background to
such
new
concepts as
the
antisocial
behaviour
order,
and
the
parenting
order
are
put
into
apractical context,
and
the
procedures
for making them,
and
the
consequences of making
them,
are
carefully
explained. The
new
law relating to racially aggravated offences (almost
meriting abooklet
on
its
own)
is analysed in
chapter
3. Some long
overdue
procedural changes affecting
the
day-to-day workings of
the
courts are listed too. These
may
lack
the
great political appeal of
the
big
issues, such as antisocial
behaviour
or
youth
crime,
but
will be of
immense
benefit in minimising delay,
and
affording
the
courts greater
flexibility in disposing of cases. Indeed, those
who
have
complained for
years
that
procedural changes
are
vital to enable
the
courts to respond
to present day challenges will derive comfort from provisions in
the
Act creating, for example, early administrative hearings,
the
sending of
indictable offences (almost) directly to
the
Crown Court,
and
the
development
of live television links in certain circumstances. The
Government
has
wisely decided to pilot
the
more
meaty
changes,
but
some
significant,
though
less revolutionary,
amendments
to
the
Bail Act
1976
are
already in force,
and
our
old
companion
doli
incapax
is
now
dead
and
buried.
In
addition to Mr Scanlan's wise words in
the
preface,
quoted
above,
he
rightly describes
the
Act as 'innovative'
and
reflecting 'imaginative
and
creative thinking'.
Many
will
have
cause to be grateful to
him
for
the
research
he
has
undertaken,
and
the
clear, precise
manner
in
which
he charts
the
changes in
the
law effected by
the
Act,
the
first
major
criminal justice legislation of
the
present
Government.
174
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