The Courier & Advertiser (Perth and Perthshire Edition)
Scots law changes under fire
THE QC who defended the killer of Perthshire pensioner Jenny Methven has warned changes to Scots law are dismantling “safeguards” that ensure fair trials.
Brian McConnachie, who defended William Kean at his trial in the High Court in Glasgow this month, is vice-chairman of the Criminal Bar Association.
Kean was jailed for 22 years for the murder of 80-year-old Jenny Methven at her cottage in Forteviot on February 20 this year after the jury returned a guilty verdict last week.
Mr McConnachie was speaking after one of Scotland’s most senior legal figures, solicitor advocate Alistair Bonnington, warned of the “huge damage” done to Scots law since the Scottish Parliament was established in 1999, claiming Holyrood has “done more harm to Scots law than Westminster did in 300 years.”
Mr Bonnington accused the Scottish Government of conducting a “sustained campaign” to erode legal aid and criticised the decision to scrap the double jeopardy law, which prevents someone from being tried for the same crime twice.
He also said two “gold standards” for Scots law will soon disappear — the need for evidence to be backed up with corroboration and a ban on juries being told about an accused’s previous convictions.
Mr McConnachie, from Perth, said: “My concern is that what is happening at the hands of the Government, with what I would suggest is the connivance of the Crown Office, is the gradual dismantling of a system which we have had for hundreds of years and which people constantly say has been the envy of the world.
“The major difficulty is the fact that the Government is dealing with all these matters in a piecemeal fashion rather than somebody like the Scottish Law Commission looking at the whole legal system and determining what is the best way forward.”
The QC, who was once senior advocate depute for the Crown Office and successfully prosecuted Robbie McIntosh for the savage murder of Anne Nicoll on Dundee Law in 2001, added: “It is difficult to see how you can get rid of all the safeguards such as corroboration and the presumption of innocence, etc, without putting anything in their place, and that seems to be the way we are going.”
A Scottish Government spokeswoman said changes to Scots law will only occur after proper research and consultation.
“Reform of the law on double jeopardy followed a detailed assessment by the independent Scottish Law Commission and a Government consultation exercise,” she said.
“The principle against multiple trials has not been abolished.
“As in England and Wales and other jurisdictions, a limited exception has been created to allow a new trial only where new evidence with a significant impact emerges following the first trial.
“Theproposedabolitionoftherequirement for corroboration was recommended in an independent review by Lord Carloway.
“Lord Carloway’s recommendations are currently subject to a Government consultation exercise, which closes on October 5.
“The consultation specifically seeks views on whether any additional safeguards would be required as a result of removing the corroboration rule.”
She added: “We provide substantial levels of funding to ensure that legal advice and representation is available to people who could not otherwise afford it.
“Last year the Scottish Legal Aid Board reported an increase in the number of firms doing legal aid work.”