| Abstrakt: |
A key theme in Mark's essay was the increased risk of wrongful convictions, which he saw as a natural consequence of the decline in criminal justice standards. The issue has been brought firmly into the public consciousness in a way not seen since the Irish terrorism miscarriages of justice of the late 1980's, not least due to the recent high-profile quashing of the conviction of Andrew Malkinson-who had served 17 and a half years in prison for a violent rape following the discovery of exculpatory DNA evidence--following on from the vast scale of the wrongful convictions of subpostmasters due to the Post Office Horizon scandal. Major inquiries are underway into both of these miscarriages of justice, so the issue will remain firmly in the public view for some time yet. As such, this paper will explore the key risks of miscarriages of justice and will examine measures currently being taken to alleviate that risk and maximise the possibility of their swift recognition and remedy. In the spirit of Mark George, it will endeavour to focus on the positive developments currently taking place, and highlight the work of the academics and legal practitioners who are dedicating their time and efforts in the aim of improving the system to the benefit of others in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] |
