Ordinary Scots deserve front row seat to see justice at work
SINCE last Monday, it has been possible to follow the trial of Derek Chauvin.
Chauvin is the former US police officer who is accused of killing George Floyd in Minneapolis in May 2020 and who was filmed kneeling on George’s neck for a number of minutes – phone footage that was so shocking that it resulted in protests against police brutality, especially towards black people.
Three cameras operated by Court TV – best known for filming the OJ Simpson murder trial in 1995 – offer access to the trial in real time, so as to assess how Chauvin reacts to evidence and I can only say I wholeheartedly approve.
Forget people claiming the right to a fair trial is compromised by the presence of cameras or that the privacy of witnesses will be jeopardised and thus expose them to intimidation, because the reality is that TV has not caused the criminal justice system in the US to collapse and most states allow cameras in their courts.
I would suggest the American public’s understanding of their legal system has improved immeasurably by giving them a front row seat to justice, and so please let’s not hear any lazy criticisms that there is a difference between a court of law and the court of public opinion.
Filming in Scottish courts has been allowed, subject to permissions and different conditions since 1992, and famously the retrial of Nat Fraser for the 1998 murder of his wife Arlene was filmed in 2013, although filming more generally rarely happens. In England and Wales, there is provision to film the judge’s sentencing remarks in high profile cases but that is as far as things go in criminal trials there. I’d like to see greater transparency and openness in our criminal courts, which can only be achieved by allowing TV cameras unfettered access – unless there are genuine issues of security and safety.
I want our courts exposed to greater public scrutiny because I know when I attend a court I am usually the only person on the public benches. What happens in our name is rarely considered, all but invisible and might as well be taking place in a parallel universe.
Justice matters and keeping those responsible for the delivery of justice aware of their duties is, for me, best achieved by allowing everyone a chance to see what goes on and so giving the public a front row seat at a trial. After all, would we be interested in this case at all if what happened to George hadn’t been captured on a mobile phone?
Scotland’s leading crime expert’s take on the warped world inhabited by crimelords, killers and creeps
I want openness and our courts exposed to public scrutiny