Crime Newsletter – April 2021

April 30, 2021

Welcome to the latest edition of our Crime Newsletter, which we hope you will find useful. In this edition:

R v Gould and others [2021] EWCA Crim 447
Andrew Jebb considers this important judgment that deals with the use and all too frequent misunderstanding and misuse of Section 66 of the Courts Act 2003.

New criminal offences introduced by the Domestic Abuse Bill
Emily Hassell, pupil of Stephen Grattage, considers the recent amendments to the Domestic Abuse Bill that will provide increased protection to victims of domestic abuse.

Youth Defendants in the Crown Court
Last month the Judicial College published a specific bench book for dealing with youth defendants in the Crown Court. Sarah Johnston provides a short summary of the bench book and key takeaways.

New-ish Firearms Sentencing Guidelines: A route map to consistency
The introduction of definitive sentencing guidelines for firearms offences is one of the latest steps taken to increase consistency of approach as well as transparency for victims and offenders. In this article, pupil Ben Berkson summarises the Firearms Sentencing Guidelines that were effective from 1 January 2021.

Imran Shafi QC – breaking down barriers
Criminal barrister Imran Shafi QC has broken down barriers and challenged stereotypes with his appointment to Silk this year. Read about Imran’s journey in this piece, originally published by Business Live.

Exchange Crime Newsletter turns one – Top 10 most read articles!
The Exchange Crime Newsletter emerged during the first lockdown last year. When court hearings came to a sudden standstill, Exchange took advantage of the extra time on members’ hands and launched the Exchange Crime Newsletter. Whilst the court hearings are now fortunately as busy as ever, the newsletter continues on as a helpful quarterly resource for members of chambers and beyond. To celebrate the newsletter turning one, here are the top ten most read articles of the past year.