This item was published during the term of a previous administration that ended in April 2007
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Scottish Criminal Cases Review Commission
31/03/2005
The Scottish Criminal Cases Review Commission has launched a new-look website providing information about its work, its decision making process, and details of cases that have been referred.
The Commission's Chief Executive Gerard Sinclair said:
"Today marks the 6th anniversary of the Commissions establishment and I am very proud to announce the launch of this new site which is intended to assist the public in learning more about the work of the Commission.
"The Commission has achieved a lot over the past couple of years, both in achieving Investor in People status and, within the last month, our new Charter Mark award. This award shows our commitment to consulting and learning from the people we provide a service to.
"This commitment to learning is clearly seen in respect of our case review process. We have eliminated the backlog of cases awaiting review and have managed to maintain this position over the past 10 months.
"At the same time we have reduced the average time taken to review a case from 14 months to under 11 months.
"This demonstrates our commitment to provide a more efficient and effective service to anyone who requires to seek the assistance of the Commission."
The SCCRC was established as an independent body on April 1, 1999, to review alleged miscarriages of justice in Scottish convictions.
Under section 194 A to L of the Criminal Procedure (Scotland) Act 1995 (as inserted by section 25 of the Crime and Punishment (Scotland) Act 1997) the Commission can refer a case to the High Court if it believes that a miscarriage of justice may have occurred and that it is in the interests of justice that a reference should be made.
Once a case is referred to the High Court by the Commission, it will proceed as a normal appeal. The Commission's statutory function is to assess, after proper investigation, whether there may have been a miscarriage of justice and whether it is in the interests of justice to refer a case. The Commission cannot decide whether a convicted person is innocent or guilty.
The Commission currently operates with a Board of seven Members, one of whom is the Chairperson, a Chief Executive, a Director of Administration, two Senior Legal Officers, 10 Legal Officers and admin support staff. It was also recently awarded a Charter Mark.