Evidence, Jury Trials and Witness Protection—The Auld Review of the English Criminal Courts
| DOI | 10.1177/136571270200600302 |
| Author | Yvette Tinsley,Mike Redmayne,Jenny McEwan |
| Published date | 01 July 2002 |
| Date | 01 July 2002 |
| Subject Matter | Article |
Evidence, jury trials and
witness protection-the
Auld review
of
the English
criminal courts
B
Jenny McEwan, Mike Redrnayne
and
Yvette
Asley
Exeter University, London School
of
Economics and the Victoria
University
of
Wellington, respectively
Abstract.
The publication of Auld
LJ’s
review
of
the English criminal courts
may herald significant reform of the trial process.
It
is argued that
recommendations to retain the jury whilst subjecting its decision-making
to greater judicial control, and restricting proper research into its operation,
lack a coherent foundation and may prove problematic in practice. The
recommendations may enhance protection
for
vulnerable witnesses
although proposals to increase the chances of convicting in cases of domestic
violence may also create risks for victims.
n December
1999.
Sir Robin Auld, a Lord Justice ofappeal. was appointed
by
the Lord Chancellor, the Home Secretary and the Attorney General to
conduct a review of the working of the English criminal courts at all
levels. The fact that this was a joint initiative signalled an aspiration to impose
‘joined-up government’ on the criminal justice system, and an implicit admission
that this may have been lacking in the past. The Review’s remit included the
practices, procedures and rules of evidence applied by the criminal courts with a
view to ensuring that they deliver justice fairly, by streamlining their process,
increasing their efficiency and strengthening their relationships with other
agencies. Lord Justice Auld interpreted his task as involving a broad inquiry into
how the criminal courts do their job and to make broad recommendations for
improvement, but not as being concerned with criminal justice policy
or
philosophy. The Criminal Courts Review Report was published in September
2001.’
1
Available at
www.criminalcourts-revieW.0rg.uk
(hereafter ‘Report’).
THE INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL
OF
EVIDENCE
&
PROOF
163
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