"Reasonable excuse" being wrongly interpreted in English criminal courts. Miscarriages of justice likely to have occurred.
1/12/2024
"Without reasonable excuse" is a component of a number of crimes, as well as existing in tax legislation. I've witnessed barristers and a judge at Norwich Crown Court pushing a false definition of the term that involves excluding mistakes.
Exactly how or why this has occurred is unclear. A suspicious type might point towards conspiracy: it makes prosecutions easier and grants more control to judges. But there could well be other reasons.
Higher courts have consistently held reasonable excuse to carry its ordinary meaning, and an excuse can involve a mistake or misunderstanding.
The question comes up of whether, or perhaps more likely, how many, miscarriages of justices have occurred due to this, and how many more will?Read More