'Insensitive' decision to rule out double jeopardy law change

The decision by government not to support calls for changes to the double jeopardy rule to safeguard children has been condemned by the law firm campaigning for the law to be changed.

According to the BBC, Justice Secretary Roberts Buckland wrote to victims’ commissioner Vera Baird, who supported the campaign, ruling out extending the law. 

A petition for the law change was led by London law firm Bolt Burdon Kemp.  

However, like all live petitions it closed on 6 November when Parliament was dissolved ahead of the forthcoming general election.

The firm is now demanding answers from the Justice Secretary for survivors of abuse saying government has not taken into the account the effect closing the petition will have on victims and on society as a whole.  

Under the double jeopardy rules in England and Wales, an accused cannot be retried for an offence unless it is considered serious or severe enough to be an exception. 

There must also be new and compelling evidence to support a new prosecution.

The petition, which attracted 4,779 signatures, demanded that all sexual abuse offences, including all forms of physical childhood sexual abuse, be made exceptions under the double jeopardy rule.

The petition stated that “any form of child abuse is serious and that those who sexually assault children should face criminal repercussions for these heinous acts, regardless of the time that has passed and that they should not be able to hide behind a legal technicality”.

However, the Justice Secretary decided extended the law would not be right.

In his letter to Ms Baird, he reportedly said: “Ultimately, there is a risk that retrial might come to be regarded not as an extremely rare exception to the double-jeopardy rule but as a species of prosecution appeal.”

Dino Nocivelli, a solicitor in the firm’s abuse department, said the manner in which the Justice Secretary dismissed the “plea to change this detrimental law is disrespectful and insensitive”.

The firm now wants to meet him to “make visible the impact this decision has had first-hand”.

Nocivelli represents the five remaining survivors of sexual abuse allegedly perpetrated by Bob Higgins when he was a youth coach at Southampton Football Club, who was acquitted of their abuse in his first trial in the late 1990s. 

He said the survivors are disappointed with the Justice Secretary’s decision not to support changes. 
    
He added: “Nobody in the government has met any of the survivors or spoken up to condemn Bob Higgins for the abhorrent abuse he subjected children to and nobody is taking the necessary steps to ensure this doesn’t continue to happen to future generations despite the mass amount of trauma this has had on people’s lives.”

The petition gained the support from the all-party parliamentary group and the victims commissioner, as well as prominent footballers and coaching staff, the media and the UK public.