Home | 7th April 1995 | Issue 17

Justice? Brighton's Campaign In Defiance of the Criminal Justice Act

SILENCE IS OLDEN

400 year old historic right - lost

It's all gone folks! The Criminal Justice Act has completely perverted the 400 year old historic right to silence. The new law - in effect from Monday - has been cleverly drafted by the Government to give the impression that only the guilty need worry about this loss of the right to silence - but who is it who determines who is guilty and innocent? 

The law gives the police and prosecution the opportunity to announce in court that you have refused to co-operate with their investigations by remaining silent, inferring guilt before the trial has even begun! The CJA has been slated by Barristers, Solicitors, Judges and respected bodies such as the Penal Reform Consortium who all believe it can only lead to more wrongful convictions.

The police are pushing to remove the right to silence completely. Paul Condon, head of the Met, recently claimed that 'villains escape time and time again from court hearings' because of all the rights and protections at their disposal. Honest coppers are forced into what Condon dubs 'noble cause corruption'. They are forced to beat up people and fabricate evidence against them in order to secure convictions!

The vast majority of those passing through the courts are not villainous masterminds but ordinary poor working class people. As the police know well people have no chance against the vast resources of the state. Only 5% of people detained in police stations use their most important right - the right to silence.

Some solicitors have a poor view of people using their right to silence. They describe people who exercise their right as Very anti-police, very anti-social in a general sense and pretty bad bastards'. With defence lawyers like these, who needs prosecutors?
There is no right to trial by jury for a number of offences, including police assault. The right to a trial is increasingly undermined by the pressures on the accused to plead guilty. The CJA requires courts to take into account early guilty pleas when sentencing. Barristers get paid more for representing several people on guilty cases than for representing one person in a trial taking several days. The result is that most people facing criminal charges have no choice but to plead guilty.

With spiraling crime rates, the police believe that in order to secure convictions the burden of proof should be reduced. These views are gaining currency at a time when increasing numbers of people are forced into desperate poverty that makes crime an unfortunate necessity of survival.

The CJA's attack on the right to silence will hit the poor immediately because the kind of expensive legal advice necessary to protect against misuse of this and other laws will not be as comprehensive under the over-stretched legal aid scheme.

With Labour and the Tories fighting to appear tougher on crime than each other we can expect little opposition from politicians to the dismantling of our rights and the increases in police powers. That opposition is left to us.

NEW 37-WORD CAUTION: "You do not have to say anything. But it may harm your defence if you do not mention when questioned something which you later rely on in court. Anything you do say may be given in evidence."

YOUR RESPONSE: "I have been advised that I should answer no questions. It is not right that I should have to give a complete case for myself until the charges have been made and properly explained and until there are other people around to check that questions put to me are fair and legal. I will say nothing until I am advised to do so by a fully qualified legal advisor." Under the CJA, silence can now be used as evidence of guilt in the following circumstances.

Under the CJA, silence can now be used as evidence of guilt in the following circumstances.

* if you raise something in your defence at court which you could reasonably have been expected to mention when questioned by police;

* if you are arrested and substances, marks or objects are found on your clothing or in your possession which suggest involvement in a specified crime;

* if you fail to give evidence in court. A court can draw 'such inferences as appear proper' from a person's silence in any of these circumstances. A person cannot be convicted on silence alone. However silence can support other evidence which would otherwise be insufficient to secure a conviction. But the provisions do not abolish the right to silence and there will be many circumstances in which people will still be able to refuse to answer police questions without any inference of guilt.

V.E. TREE CRIME

Canadian war veterans are outraged and insulted by the decision by Brian Mawhinney, the Secretary of State for Transport to desecrate a war memorial - 350 Sycamore trees planted in memory of servicemen who died in World War II. Following protests and emotional appeals the DoT had made promises on Tuesday that the tree cutting would be held back until after VE day. By Wednesday, however, the DoT went back on its word without any warning, cutting them down, saying that they were unsafe and a danger to passing traffic!

During the protest where people tried to stop the cuttings six were arrested and charged with Aggravated Trespass under the CJA. One protester was charged with attempting to disrupt tree felling by hugging a tree! Those arrested are bailed to appear at Alton Magistrates Court in Hampshire on May 4th at 10am, so turn up to offer support if you can.

The protests continued the next night, when over 50 police formed a cordon around the tree fellers, and 3 more people were nicked, one for allegedly assaulting a police officer. The contractors came back the next evening and began work again protected by more police, and 3 more arrests were made. By Thursday morning most of the trees had been felled. Shows you can trust the word of a minister about as far as you can throw them. For more details ring Road Alert! on 0635 521 770

Justice?

Grand Re-opening of Brighton's Squat Advice Centre 
71-73 Grand Parade - Sat 8th April 1995

Saturday
NOON OPENING CEREMONY + SQUATTING Housing Information Project talk 
1.30pm SchNEWS LIVE! 
3pm SUSTAINABLE FUTURES informal discussion on principles of forest gardening, its design and development of sites
4pm SHOREHAM: - talk and video by Campaign Against Live Freight
9pm On the live vibe followed by: - @ 2am BLUE ROOM SOUND SYSTEM into the night and finishes early morning sleepy heads cafe

Sunday
Campaign videos shown throughout the day
2:00pm Chilled Out Classical Cafe
3-5pm Children's Activities with Just-us-in-art using recycled materials
5:00pm Justice? discussion - What to do with the squat 
7:30pm SUNDAY MASS kum-b4-8:-a-sorted DJs with ambient sounds - come along bring cushions, sounds, lights, munchies, back drops and vibes, a collection plate will be circulated

AND DNA

The world's first national DNA database will be compiled regardless of your personal freedom or human rights - thanks to the Criminal Justice Act. New police powers granted this week give officers the right to forcibly take hair or a mouth swab from anyone arrested whether they are charged or not. The information obtained from samples can be kept indefinitely, even if suspects are found to be innocent. This applies not just to rapists and murderers but also to those suspected of petty offences.

Section 59 of the CJA redefines non-intimacy to include mouth searches. Most people would consider having a police superintendent (not a doctor!) poking about in their mouth pretty intimate. The definition has changed just so that DNA samples can be obtained more easily and from more people.

Under the European Convention on Human Rights, we have the right to privacy, unless for the prevention of crime - here the police are simply gathering information to build a database. We also have the right not to be subjected to inhuman or degrading treatment yet the police can use force to take a sample.

These new police powers are open to abuse: in Wiltshire last year, under the pretence of investigating a rape, police asked over 2,000 black men to give DNA samples. A blatantly racist, misuse of their powers - imagine how much further the police can go now DNA laws are in action. With these new powers, the Police and Criminal Evidence Act of 1984 (PACE) has been "refined, abused and the abuse made law" says Lee Jasper, of the National Black Caucus. You can judge for yourself how our civil liberties are compromised when police are given the power to pluck hair off the head, or search the mouth of, someone they suspect has nicked a Mars bar.

DN..eh?

Deoxyribonucleic Acid or DNA, is the stuff which identifies you individually. Using DNA tests scientists can identify you by analysing your saliva, hair etc. DNA profiles from the scene of a crime can be compared to suspects DNA. The chances of a match are estimated at 1 in a million, these figures are debatable. Last year, Andrew Deen, was convicted of rape on DNA evidence. The jury was told there was a chance of 1 in 700,000 that he was innocent. On appeal a new estimation put this at 1 in 33 and the conviction was quashed.

DNA is often the most damning evidence the prosecution can use. The defence are often forced to rely on the prosecutions DNA results making it is difficult to challenge. In the few cases where the defence has re-analysed the DNA they have found the prosecution analysis inconclusive.

DNA results presented in Court are biased towards the prosecution. It is still taken as scientific fact by all sides and given too much weight. Juries are apt to convict without other evidence when given DNA proof. But without corroborating evidence, the chances of being wrongly convicted are higher.

Seen with the introduction of compulsory ID cards announced last week and the growth of blanket video surveillance, the DNA database is yet another government attempt to log, document and control. The Government is steadily eroding the rights of each and every one of us, using the pretext of the fight against crime to push through increasingly restrictive laws. Don't be fooled - Big Brother will be here sooner than you think - get involved and help in the fight against the CJA.

e-SchNEWS
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SchNEWS IN BRIEF

About 50 activists from the Lloyds and Midland Boycott Campaign asked the Lloyds AGM why the £1.8 billion Lloyds was spending on its merger with the Cheltenham and Gloucester could not be spent on cancelling some of the debt owed from the Third world. Their questions were ignored, and some people were treated roughly by security. They got their message across to many shareholders. For more info contact LAMB 0161 274 4665

*** Update on Stanworth Valley in Preston tree village. Now over 30 tree houses and up to 50 people living in the valley. They are appealing to the High Court in London against eviction, and expect eviction anytime after April 10th. Direct action going on all the time against the M65, so get up there if you can. For more info ring 0161 861 7895 or the camp mobile on 0585 165311

*** two fascists have been nicked under the CJA and their printing press confiscated 

*** An 8-month pregnant woman is among travellers to be evicted under CJA @ 'old army camp', Crowborough, East Sussex - urgent council/police/social services meeting in progress ***

White Book

The definitive book of anti-CJA and related groups. Get your forms in by April 20th at the latest! Funded by the Levellers, put together by Justice? - you've gotta be in it to win it. Forms from SchNEWS

Party and Protest

SAT 8th APR Grand Opening of Justice? new squat @ 71 Grand Parade, Brighton - former Housing Advice Centre! Speakers from Housing Information Project, CALF, McLibel & forest gardening plus music and party..... 12 noon onwards 01273 685913

SAT 8th APR Defend Right To Silence/Stop the SUS laws Holyhead School, Soho Rd., Handsworth. 12 noon 0121 449 5452 

SAT 8th APR Liberty legal briefing on CJA in Cardiff 01222 343 066

SAT 8th APR Loop Guru, Children of the Bong, Tribal Drift and more benefit for Greenpeace + anti CJA action South Parade Pier, Portsmouth

SUN 9th APR Mass trespass at Sandringham Coalition 0181 801 5285 

MON 10th APR Bye, Bye Right to Silence Hello National DNA Database, Stop and Search, Confiscation of party equipment and peoples vehicles/homes......

TUE 11th APR Crane-sitters court case. First people arrested under CJA in solidarity action against M65. Manchester Earth First! 0161 274 4666 

WED 12th APR 'Dragon' Planning meeting for land campaign. 7pm Cooltan Arts 0171 737 0100 

WED 12th APR Anti CJA Public Meeting 8pm at the community centre, Victoria St., Braintree 01376 322 776

13th- 17th APR Earth First! Gathering Colleymore Farm, about one mile from Coleshill Village near Swindon 0794 512790 

FRI 14th APR Aldermaston march to London CND 0171 607 3616

SAT 15th APR International Day of Action Against McDonalds 0171 713 1269

SAT 15th APR Mass rally and action against foxhunting and the CJA 12.30 pm Charring nr. Ashford, Kent 01233 633 037

SAT 15th APR A 'travelling players' motorcade street theatre from Colchester to Southend to take part in "the last rites of the CJA" 01245 491 250 

MON 17th APR 'Civil disobedience = global responsibility' march organised by Youth CND, assemble 1pm Marble Arch, London 

23-30 APR "OPERATION DRAGON". A major occupation of land is planned to take place somewhere in the south-east SAE land Reform, Box E, 111 Magdalen Road, Oxford, OX4 1RQ. E-mail: eartharc@gn.apc.org

INSIDE SchNEWS

Jim Chambers is still inside on remand for alleged criminal damage to a road construction site. Write to Jim Chambers DV 2504, BMP Wormwood Scrubs, PO Box 757, Du Cane Road, London W12.

More CJA...

Parts of the CJA in effect from Monday include: No Right to Silence, Confiscation of Sound Systems and peoples homes, DNA Database and Stop and Search.

For further copies of the SchNEWS send stamps/donations (payable to Justice?) SchNEWS c/o on-the-fiddle PO BOX 2600 Brighton East Sussex . Tel: (01273) 685913. 
Or pick one up @ Peace Centre, Gardener St, Brighton and around town e-mail: schnews@brighton.co.uk

Justice? meet every Wednesday 7pm @ prince albert

Oh No! Another all-nighter SchNEWS!

SchNEWS, PO Box 2600, Brighton, BN2 0EF, England
Phone: +44 (0)1273 685913
email: schnews@brighton.co.uk

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