‘”Not a stain on your character?”: the finality of acquittals and the search for just outcomes’
Year: 2021
Type: article
Abstract: Little attention has been given to the harms, both formal and informal, inflicted on acquitted defendants. This article documents the nature of those harms and questions the legitimacy of state-sanctioned restrictions on the lives of acquitted defendants through the activities of the Disclosure and Barring Service and the use of enhanced criminal record certificates. Whilst recognising the heterogeneous nature of the acquitted population and being cautious about risks posed to vulnerable others arising out of the gap between criminal and civil standards of proof, the article argues in favour of greater justice for acquitted defendants. It also proposes both a more generous approach to compensation for the acquitted and a bifurcated use of necessary restrictions for some on their subsequent liberties.
Authors: Jill Peay, E Player
Language: English
Topic: Criminal Law and Evidence
Subfield: Law
Field: Social Sciences
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W3207753872