First Cadder-related referral

The Scottish Criminal Cases Review Commission (‘the Commission’) has made its first referral to the High Court in the wake of the Cadder ruling.
 
The case concerned is that of Ryan McCallum, who was convicted of rape on 19th May 2009, and later sentenced to five years’ imprisonment. The Commission has decided to refer the case to the High Court because it considers that, in light of the decision of the Supreme Court in Cadder v HMA, and that of the European Court of Human Rights in Taxquet v Belgium, Mr McCallum may not have had a fair trial.

The Cadder case concerned the right to legal representation after detention by the police. Until then, a suspect could be detained and questioned in Scotland by police for up to six hours without legal representation. Cadder successfully challenged this on the grounds of Article Six of the European Convention on Human Rights, which refers to the right to representation before and during a trial.

Shortly after the Supreme Court ruling, the Scottish Parliament passed emergency legislation to deal with the effects of the decision. The Criminal Procedure (Legal Assistance, Detention and Appeals) (Scotland) Act 2010 aimed to:

• Enshrine a right to legal advice for suspects detained and questioned by police.
• Extend the maximum interview period from six to 12 hours in all cases.
• Provide a mechanism to ensure adequate legal aid arrangements are available.
• Make provision to reinforce the principles of certainty and finality set out in the ruling.

The Scottish Government also commissioned a wider ranging review of the Scottish Criminal Justice system in the form of the Carloway Review, which has recently published its findings.