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Welcome to the sixth edition of Victims and Witnesses newsletter, Vital Voices.
This regular newsletter will help us share with you, and keep you informed of, what's going on in the unit and encourage your interest and participation to help us meet our goal of bringing victims and witnesses to the heart of the justice system.
Review of Information for Victims of Crime
For the last few years the Scottish Executive has provided an information leaflet and a website for victims of crime in Scotland. The information leaflet was last reviewed in 2003 and the website has not been reviewed since its launch in 2002. We think it is now time to re-assess whether the information that we provide is appropriate to the needs of victims, readable and readily available.
We are going to be asking members of the Victim Steering Group (VSG), as well as practitioners who are ideally placed to provide feedback, to complete a questionnaire about the website and information leaflet. The VSG is the multi-agency group which oversees implementation of the Scottish Strategy for Victims. Its members include representatives from the Association of Chief Police Officers Scotland, Association of Directors of Social Work, Convention of Scottish Local Authorities, Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service, District Court Association, Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary, Judicial Studies Committee, Scottish Children's Reporter Administration, Scottish Court Service, Scottish Prison Service, Victim's Forum and Victim Support Scotland. We are initially contacting practitioners in organisations that received or requested copies of the victim information leaflet and/or the National Standards for Victims of Crime leaflet last year. These organisations were not just in the criminal justice sector but also came from health and local authorities.
If you do not receive a copy of this questionnaire and would like to give us some feedback, please contact Michele Aitken in the Victims of Crime branch (0131 244 4227 or at Michele.aitken@scotland.gsi.gov.uk ) and she will arrange for a form to be emailed to you or sent to you by hard copy.
We look forward to hearing what you think.
The Vulnerable Witnesses (Scotland) Act 2004 - Witnesses for the Defence or Other Party -
The Practitioner's Perspective by Eileen Paterson
It is now over a year since the Vulnerable Witnesses (Scotland) Act 2004 began making inroads into the experience of witnesses in the Scottish courts.
Solicitors are an integral part of the mechanics of the Act as it is their responsibility to initially assess witnesses to ascertain whether they are vulnerable and, if so, whether support and assistance will be sufficient to allay their fears (e.g. from the Witness Service), or whether the 'special measures' contained within the Act need to be brought into play to allow the witness to give his or her best evidence. Secondly, it is the solicitor's responsibility to identify which of the special measures will be most appropriate to assist the witness (e.g. use of a supporter, screens, live TV link, evidence by a commissioner or evidence of a prior statement).
There are two categories of vulnerable witness, namely child witnesses who are under 16 years of age and witnesses over 16 years of age who fall within the terms of the Act. There is no difficulty in identifying a child witness but it can be much more awkward to identify an adult vulnerable witness. It is understandable that witnesses, particularly vulnerable witnesses, may wish to have little to do with solicitors but, without direct contact, it is almost impossible for the solicitor to carry out the assessment required by the Act to determine whether a witness is vulnerable and, if so, to explain to the witness the special measures available and then to go on to consider what might be best suited to the needs of that particular witness. To achieve the best outcome, co-operation from the witness is a necessity.
A library of information and guidance has been provided by the Scottish Executive to practitioners - it can be accessed using the following link. http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Topics/Justice/criminal/17416/InformationMaterials . There are also a number of booklets available from the same source for various categories of witness in different proceedings. These materials are also available on the Law Society of Scotland's website: http://www.lawscot.org.uk
The concept of vulnerable witnesses is still new to both solicitors and witnesses and it may be that it will take time when becoming aware of a witness, or indeed when meeting a client, for the solicitor's first thought to be 'is he/she potentially a vulnerable witness?'.
I have no doubt that work will spread from various angles. Witnesses who have had a positive experience as a result of the provisions set down in the Act will tell friends and family; solicitors will become more familiar with the provisions of the Act each time they use it. Ultimately, if the court believes special measures are necessary then the judge or sheriff may authorise which special measures he/she considers most appropriate for taking the witness's evidence.
The Vulnerable Witnesses (Scotland) Act 2004 - Further phases of Implementation (Phases 3 and 4)
The first stage of implementation of the Vulnerable Witnesses (Scotland) Act 2004 in relation to child witnesses in High Court and sheriff court solemn cases and children's hearings court proceedings came into operation on1 April 2005. The second stage in relation to adult vulnerable witnesses in similar proceedings came into operation on 1 April this year.
The Victims and Witnesses Unit are currently working with key stakeholders to take forward the next and final stages of the implementation of the provisions of the Act.
These will apply the Act to summary proceedings (criminal cases without a jury) and civil proceedings. 'Civil proceedings' cover all non-criminal cases in the Court of Session and Sheriff Court, including Fatal Accident Inquiries.
We expect phases 3 and 4 will come into operation as follows:
Summary cases for child witnesses on1 April 2007;
Summary cases for adult witnesses - provisional date by end of December 2007;
Civil cases, including Fatal Accident Inquiries, by end of October 2007.
To achieve this we will be working and consulting with others over the next year to agree how practice will work, assess the need for any further practitioner guidance and user information materials, as well as training needs and further awareness raising.
Road Death Working Group
The Unit's Victims of Crime branch is also responsible for the information pack that is provided to families and friends following a death on the road. It is produced by Brakecare, a road safety charity based in Huddersfield, and given out by police Family Liaison Officers. Experience gained in producing the information pack for families bereaved by murder and culpable homicide suggests that the most productive way to review the pack would be by convening a working group that could discuss issues and attempt to reach agreement on any changes. We have therefore recently set up the Road Death Working Group with representatives from the Association of Chief Police Officers Scotland, Brakecare, Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service (including Victim Information and Advice), the Inspectorate of Prosecution, Scottish Campaign Against Irresponsible Drivers, Scottish Court Service and Victim Support Scotland.
At this stage we intend to focus on the existing information pack - its content, style, and format - and whether it is the right way to provide information to families and friends. Other issues may arise during discussions, and we will note these and consider what further action might be required, by the Group or others. The Group has met twice to date and we hope its work on information needs will be concluded around autumn 2006.
Contact: The contact for more information is Sally Pendreigh, telephone 0131 244 3713 or e-mail at sally.pendreigh@scotland.gsi.gov.uk
Homicide Working Group
Review of Information Pack
We are currently reviewing the information pack for families bereaved by murder and culpable homicide published in December 2004. It is given to families by police Family Liaison Officers and was drawn up in consultation with the Homicide Working Group (HWG). The group has representatives from ACPOS, the Crown Office and Victim Information and Advice (VIA), the Scottish Court Service, social work and voluntary organisations which support families - Families of Murdered Children (FOMC), People Experiencing Trauma and Loss (PETAL) and Victim Support Scotland (VSS).
We undertook to review the pack after its first year of use, and obtained feedback from support organisations, police Family Liaison Co-ordinators for each Scottish police force, and VIA Officers. Responses indicated the pack provided information to families:
- previously not available in one reference source
- across a range of areas (e.g. practical, procedural, support)
- in a format which is easily accessible and easily navigated
- that can be used over time to refer to as required.
Feedback also indicated the pack helps statutory agencies in their contact with families, gives a foundation for more consistent practice across agencies/the country, and supports voluntary organisations in the work they do with families.
But there are a number of areas we can update or improve. We need to take account of High Court reform arrangements and implementation of the Vulnerable Witnesses (Scotland) Act 2004. And we will look again at the language in the pack to try to make it more accessible. We hope the revised pack will be available by autumn 2006.
Wider Support
The Working Group also made a number of recommendations about the wider support needs of bereaved families.
A new fund was introduced on 3 April 2006 to help meet the expenses of next-of-kin who are not called as witnesses. It will be reviewed after a year. Work on other recommendations - for example, on training for those coming into contact with next-of-kin, and court facilities - is ongoing. And we are looking at ways in which the media can be encouraged to take a more sensitive approach to coverage of homicide cases.
Contact: The contact for more information is Sally Pendreigh, telephone 0131 244 3713 or e-mail at sally.pendreigh@scotland.gsi.gov.uk
HAVE YOUR SAY
Please let us have your comments about the way we keep in touch with you.
Are we joined up?
Could we consult with you in a better way?
Do you have any comments on the issues raised in this newsletter?
We look forward to hearing from you.
Please contact us by
e-mail: vitalvoicesfeedback@scotland.gsi.gov.uk or call 0131 244 3314.
Help us to help victims and witnesses.
Copies of the information leaflet are available under the section on Scottish Strategy for Victims. The website address is www.scottishvictimsofcrime.co.uk