This Act of Scottish Parliament is in twelve parts: protection of the public at large; victims' rights; sexual offences; prisoners; drugs courts; non-custodial punishments; children; evidential, jurisdictional and procedural matters; bribery and corruption; criminal records; local authority functions; and a miscellaneous part which includes sections on offences aggravated by religious prejudice, wildlife offences and anti-social behaviour strategies.
This website provides an access point to information relating to all civil and criminal courts within Scotland, including the Court of Session, the High Court of Justiciary, the Sheriff Courts and a number of other courts, commissions and tribunals as well the District Courts.
The information includes location details, contact numbers, advice and details of recent significant judgements.
Report examining the issue of crime in Scotland by looking at key indicators and the policies in place to deal with criminal behaviour, in particular focusing on policing, courts and sentencing to see what actions could be taken in those areas to achieve a long term fall in the crime rate.
Report presenting evidence and case studies which highlight the type and extent of sexual abuse experienced by adults with a learning disability and how they are often poorly served by the legal system in England. The report argues for new legislation to provide better protection from abuse and ensure abusers are successfully prosecuted and sentenced.
White paper laying out the UK Government's thinking on a fresh approach to adoption including actions to be taken and new legislation to be introduced to make adoption procedures more clear, consistent and fair.
These rules set out the procedures governing the constitution, arrangement and decision-making of children’s hearings. The rules consolidate and amend the Children's Hearings (Scotland) Rules 1986 taking into account the new provisions introduced by the Local Government etc. (Scotland) Act 1994, the Criminal Procedure (Scotland) Act 1995 and the Children (Scotland) Act 1995.
Report presenting the early findings from the Scottish Crime and Justice Survey 2008/09. Included are estimates for the majority of questions contained in the survey questionnaire and some simple one-to-one relationships between survey variables.
This resource is a review which looks specifically at problems with the implementation of the Human Rights Act. The review was commissioned in the immediate aftermath of the Inquiry Report (by HM Chief Inspector of Probation) into the release of Anthony Rice, which had suggested that human rights arguments, and the Human Rights Act, had been contributory factors in the events leading to the murder of Naomi Bryant.
Report providing an overview of crime and justice policies in Scotland and making comparisons with data from previous reviews to give an indication of how Scotland is performing.
Report of the Bradley Inquiry into the extent to which offenders with mental health problems or learning disabilities in England could be diverted from prison to other services and the obstacles to such diversion. The report makes recommendations on the organisation of effective court liaison and diversion arrangements and the services required to support them.