Recent Book: An Old Friend to Help: Criminal Law
| Author | Portia |
| Published date | 01 January 1979 |
| Date | 01 January 1979 |
| DOI | 10.1177/0032258X7905200117 |
| Subject Matter | Recent Book |
CON AND USE UP-TO-DATE
C. C. TOYNE"Motor Vehicle Technical Regulations"(2nd Edition)
Liffon Engineering Services £3.75
The Second Edition of
"Motor
Vehicle classes of vehicle are set out giving the
T ec h n i c a
IRe
gu I a t
ion
s" is a n details of regulations which apply. In
explanatory guide to the recently particular the section on the very
published Motor Vehicles(Construction complicated matter of weights of goods
and Use)Regulations 1978 and the Road vehicles is well set out.
Vehicles Lighting Regulations
1971
- This is a most useful work and should
1977. be to hand in every police traffic area
The regulations are broken down to office and prosecution departments
make them more easily understood. The generally. R.H.H.
AN OLD
FRIEND
TO
HELP
SMITH&
HOGAN:
Criminal Law.
(Fourth
Edition). Butterworth £9.75
The fourth edition of Smith and
Hogan's 'Criminal Law' has been long
overdue. Although the third edition was
reprinted three times, it was originally
published in
June
1973 and, not
surprisingly, there have been numerous
developments in the Criminal Law
requiring the expert attention of the two
professors. Unfortunately, the new
edition was delayed by the enactment of
the Criminal Law Act 1977 which has
effected such major changes to certain
branches of the Law that it would have
been pointless to publish an edition
which did not include such changes.
As it is, the new edition has been
written as if the whole of the Act were in
force at the time of publication, .with
notes to indicate where particular
provisions have not been brought into
effect. Also covered in substantial detail
in the book are the amendments which
have been made by case law to the
following subjects: mens rea, parties to
crime, theft and obtaining by deception,
incitement, attempt, perverting the
course
of
justice,
murder
and
manslaughter. The case of Majewski, for
example, has been carefully considered
for the effect that the decision has had
upon the possible defence of intoxication
to crimes of specific and basic intent.
I am grateful not only to Professors
Smith and Hogan for the excellence of
their academic work but also to their
publishers
for
using
larger
and,
therefore, more readable print.PORTIA
A VEXED SUBJECT
J. R.
FINCH.
LL.B: Practical Police Prosecuting
Police Review Publishing Company Ltd. £1.50
This small publication is described by
the author
as'
A Guide for Police Officers
appearing as advocates' and, regarded in
the light of that description, it is not very
successful in achieving the purpose which
he obviously had in mind.
The Guide is useful, because in a total
of only 68 pages itcontains a great deal of
information which will be helpful to
police officers with limited experience of
advocacy. M r. Finch was faced with a
difficult task of finding a balance
between
inadequate
coverage
of
important points and unduly lengthy
treatment, which can tend to be
confusing and difficult to remember. He
is to be congratulated on some concise,
crisp, easily memorised comment on
problems and procedures which the
inexperienced advocate must master ifhe
Januarv /979
is to succeed at all.
It
is suggested that the author has
made some of his own difficulties by the
method in which the work has been
arranged.
It
would have been better as 'A
Guide' if, in the early pages, he had dealt
shortly with the stages of a summary
hearing
(preparation,
opening,
examination-in-chief and so on) limiting
himself to matters common to nearly all
cases and then, in later sections dealing
with the important particular points
which arise regularly or from time to
time.
Officers should look on the book as a
source of concise comment but should be
aware of the dangers of leaning on it too
heavily as a guide to 'how to do it'.
COLIN STAPLES
89
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