Something I wrote for The Guardian about the tough-on-crime rhetoric at the Conservative Party Conference is available here.
Read moreThe justice system is failing to tackle our rape case scandal
Something I’ve written about the scandalous delays in the criminal justice system has found its way into the Thunderer column in The Times today. It can be read here (£).
Read moreDon’t fall for Boris Johnson’s criminal justice con tricks
Yesterday morning, newly-appointed Justice Secretary Robert Buckland told Radio 4’s Today programme of his pleasure that the Prime Minister is taking an interest in the criminal justice system. And certainly, after three years of wilful abandonment under Theresa May, I would in principle gladly welcome some Downing Street-level political attention on the ruinous state of…
Read moreBoris Johnson and misconduct in public office: 8 things you should probably know
On 7 June 2019, the High Court brought to a halt the attempted private prosecution of Boris Johnson for misconduct in public office. Today, the full judgment has been published. There has been a lot of commentary surrounding this case, not all of it based on a firm (or even rudimentary) grasp of the facts….
Read moreIgnorant, dishonest or both? Boris Johnson’s ramblings about prisoners and spa breaks are divorced from reality.
As today’s resignation announcement by the Prime Minister prefigures, in bookmakers’ eyes at least, the dawn of a Boris Johnson premiership, I thought it worth typing up a thread I posted earlier this week in response to Mr Johnson’s latest column for the Daily Telegraph. On Monday, the former Foreign Secretary proudly promoted his article…
Read moreShamima Begum may not deserve your sympathy, but she is entitled to legal aid
Another weekend, another flurry of anti-legal aid stories finding their way into the tabloids. On the criminal legal aid front, The Mirror splashed outrage at the notion of Andrew Hill, the pilot acquitted of manslaughter following the Shoreham Airshow tragedy, “getting” legal aid to mount his successful defence at his criminal trial last year. It’s…
Read morePeter Hitchens’ comments about Jo Cox’s killer betray a fundamental ignorance of the basic facts
A familiar sound for readers of the Mail on Sunday is the deafening cymbal-clash of Peter Hitchens colliding with reality. This last Sunday offered a particular highlight, which, although there is undoubted wisdom in leaving him alone to figuratively wander the 21stcentury in his dressing gown shouting at clouds, cannot pass without comment. Summarised by…
Read moreThe assault on Jack Grealish – is 14 weeks’ imprisonment the right sentence?
I fired off a quick thread last night offering my rough take on yesterday’s conviction and sentence of Paul Mitchell, the Birmingham City supporter who ran onto the pitch during Sunday’s match between Birmingham and Aston Villa and assaulted Villa footballer Jack Grealish. Below are my provisional thoughts. What were the charges? Paul Mitchell was…
Read moreDon’t let the Jack Shepherd stories on legal aid distract you from the government’s cynical agenda
Jack Shepherd is a coward. A pathetic, mewling embarrassment of a man. He is also a convicted killer, having been found guilty of gross negligence manslaughter. He caused the death of 24 year-old Charlotte Brown by taking her out on the Thames in his defective speedboat – bought, he boasted, to “pull women” – and,…
Read moreHome Alone 2: Lost In The Live Tweet
Many if not most of you will have already seen this, but I decided to mark Festivus Eve (22nd December) by live-tweeting a festive favourite, Home Alone 2: Lost In New York, and doing my muddled best to analyse it through the lens of English and Welsh criminal law (a lens somewhat fuzzed by a…
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