News & Advice

Natural England is the government’s advisor for the natural environment in England and Wales. Established in 2006, its purpose is to help conserve, enhance and manage the natural environment. It enforces the laws that protect wildlife and the environment and state that enforcement is used as a last resort. Natural England has responsibility for sites… Continue reading Natural England Prosecutions

You may have heard the name Daniel Morgan being mentioned in the media recently.  Daniel was a private investigator who would carry out extensive work for the News of the World. He was found murdered in 1987 in a car park with an axe embedded in his head, with no conviction regarding his death. An… Continue reading Who is Daniel Morgan?

The Government’s End-to-End Review of the Criminal Justice System Response began in 2019. The purpose was to look at evidence across the system, from reporting rape to the police through to court outcomes, to understand what was happening in cases of adult rape.  Although the number of reported cases has not really changed, the number… Continue reading Rape Review

A new draft sentencing guideline for the offence of importing prohibited or restricted firearms has been published for consultation. There are no current guidelines in respect of these offences, although there are eight current guidelines for offences under the Firearms Act 1968. Sentencing guidelines set the range for sentences and are intended to reflect current… Continue reading Unlawful Importation of Firearms Offences

HMRC seized £35,000 cash in plastic carrier bags from a Mr Mann as it was suspected he was fraudulently evading excise duty. Boxes of vodka worth around £220,000 had also been found on the premises. Once cash is seized, it can be held for up to 48 hours, after which time an application must be… Continue reading Detention of Seized Cash

In Israel and some 16 European countries, there is a specific offence of Holocaust denial. Holocaust denial is denying that the genocide of Jews took place by the Nazis in the Holocaust. Deniers will, for example, say that significantly less than the accepted number of Jews died, that the camps were not used for murder… Continue reading Holocaust Denial

A former premier league footballer, Shayne Bradley, pleaded guilty to stalking a former girlfriend. It was said he followed her, watched her house, sent mails and made abusive phone calls. He hid in hedges near her home and set up a fake dating profile to make contact. The conduct was over a four-month period, but… Continue reading Stalking and Stalking Protection Orders

Alan Foster, Donald Denton and Peter Metcalf were charged with perverting the course of justice, accused of altering the statements of 68 police officers following the Hillsborough disaster in 1989. Denton and Foster were former senior police officers, Metcalf was the former police force solicitor for South Yorkshire. Their trial has been halted following a… Continue reading Hillsborough Prosecutions

The existing assault guidelines came into effect in January 2012; at the same time, the attempt murder guideline was revised.  Following an “extensive and complex project”, new sentencing guidelines have been announced for certain violent offences, including new guidance for assaults on emergency workers. Sentencing guidelines are referred to by any sentencing tribunal to assist… Continue reading Assault Sentencing Guidelines

Sometimes you can commit an offence without doing very much at all. Harbouring an escapee is one of those offences. The offence is committed if you harbour a person who has escaped from prison or assisting an escapee by giving that person any assistance with intent to prevent, hinder or interfere with him being taken… Continue reading Harbouring an Escapee