Lack of help criminaly

[Cariad]

I did a post a few months back of how my son was sexually assaulted whilst on holiday with the school. Now that the police have my sons evidence and the other accused persons evidence there is talk of dropping it as my son cannot be cross examined in court as he has ASD????

 

Has anyone come up against this as it's clearly wrong. This just puts out the message that is you want to abuse a child make sure they have special needs..

 

I'm beyond angry as there is no one which deals with such a delicate situation. I feel totally let down and as a result my son and our family are suffering terrible and my son has no school and hasn't had one for 3 months now. Also there are no places out there whatsoever

[cmuir]

Hi

 

I remember your post and being horrified by it. Have you sought specialist legal advice? NAS might be able to provide some leads. There was someone in my locality that was imprisoned for raping a 40 year old woman with a mental age of 8. Guess what I'm saying is that I'm assuming that woman would not have been cross-examined in the conventional way, but they must have got around this somehow as the man was sentenced. Good luck with this and keep us posted.

 

Caroline.

[Karen A]

Hi Cariad.That sounds very frustrating and upsetting.

I think it would be worth contacting NAS to ask for some specialist advice.I hope they will either have experience in this issue or be able to refer you to someone who does.

 

The court case that recieved wide media coverage last week was reported as being the first case in which evidence was accepted as being reliable that was given by a link into court with cross examination of a child age four or six [who was younger at the time of the offence].I think that case has now gone to appeal according to media coverage.However it did get to court.Karen.

 

[emmacroombs]

I did a post a few months back of how my son was sexually assaulted whilst on holiday with the school. Now that the police have my sons evidence and the other accused persons evidence there is talk of dropping it as my son cannot be cross examined in court as he has ASD????

 

Has anyone come up against this as it's clearly wrong. This just puts out the message that is you want to abuse a child make sure they have special needs..

 

I'm beyond angry as there is no one which deals with such a delicate situation. I feel totally let down and as a result my son and our family are suffering terrible and my son has no school and hasn't had one for 3 months now. Also there are no places out there whatsoever

 

Hi Cariad,

 

I'm so sorry that you and your son are in this situation.

 

Last year I carried out research into the way the criminal justice system treats people with ASD and may have some information will might help you - I will dig it all out when I am home from work and let you know anything which is relevant. I seem to remember a police officer telling me about a new policy regarding victims and witnesses who are vulnerable which may be relevant to your case. Certainly the arguement that your son cannot be cross-examined in court seems total rubbish - there are proven, admissible, ways of cross-examining vulnerable people in court. I will look at all the information tonight and update you.

 

Am I right in thinking from the other thread that the incident happened in France? If so, is it the French or English police who are dealing with the case?

[madme]

Cariad, it seems there are a few issue in your post. With regard to the lack of school provision you ought to take legal advice- some solicitors will offer a free first session. Check out the Law Society website to find a local Solicitor who deals with Education law

Secondly your chjild may have a personal injury claim - have you considered a CICA claim- have the police mentioned this? Again you will need a local Solicitor - someone specailising in Personal Injury- you may be lucky and find someone who deals with both areas.

Thirdly- the prosecution- call the NAS and see if they can help. Hopefully someone more knowledgeable will be able to help. Cant see why he cant give evidence - has it gone to the CPS for consideration. If its in France then agian you may need specailist advice- the NAS may be able to find someone to assist.

 

Sounds a terrible situation to be in. Hope you get some help soon.

Take Care

[Cariad]

Thanks all for your replies, the NAS are short staffed today and I haven't been able to talk to anyone. The solicitors we have been recommended are £250 an hour, it's ridiculous!

 

Madme I'll follow up the info you have put here, thank you ever so much.

 

emmacroombes thank you too, that would be great if you have something.

 

and I will keep you all posted.

[bid]

Thanks all for your replies, the NAS are short staffed today and I haven't been able to talk to anyone. The solicitors we have been recommended are £250 an hour, it's ridiculous!

 

Madme I'll follow up the info you have put here, thank you ever so much.

 

emmacroombes thank you too, that would be great if you have something.

 

and I will keep you all posted.

 

I think he would qualify for legal aid if he brought the prosecution himelf as he his a minor?

 

This sounds like a dreadful situation

 

Bid

[Sally44]

I'd follow up bids comment as he maybe onto something there.

Also where the incident happened ie. in UK or abroad as laws and procedures vary greatly from country to country.

And yes, there are ways of giving evidence without having to be in court in the UK.

 

[isme]

Check out legal aid.. I dont know if it helps but I know that "the one show" did a piece on legal aid last night and there is also a phone number where you can call and speak to a solicitor. They will then determine whether you qualify for legal aid..

I remember your post and it made me feel sick for him. I cant believe they have said he would not make a reliable witness based on his ASD. Have you thought about talking to the disability and discrimination team? Surely they are discriminating against him through his ASD?

 

Good luck..

[emmacroombs]

 

Hi Cariad,

 

I've had a quick look and found the following which may help you/be relevant. I'm not sure if I'm allowed to put links on here so you might need to look these up on the internet. I think the key things are to find out exactly why they are thinking your son would not be able to be cross-examined (and then those reasons can be challenged and proven otherwise!) and who is making that decision. Ultimately it is the CPS who decide if there is enough evidence and if the case is in the public's interest (no doubt it is!!) to carry it forward to court. Once in court there are so many ways your son can give evidence and be cross-examined to ensure that he suffers minimum distress and his evidence is of sound quality. Seems to me that if they are thinking about saying no straightaway the police/cps are either too lazy to put in the effort or don't know how to help in the first place.

 

1. The Achieving Best Evidence in Criminal Proceedings; guidance on interviewing victims and witnesses and using special measures, ammended in 2007, gives the criminal justice system a framework to follow when interviewing and cross-examining people who are vulnerable. Section 3.71 specifically mentions how to help those with ASD (although it is very brief), but the rest of the guidance can be applied too. This guidance is mainly about how the witness should be questionned, what words to avoid (e.g. double meanings), what sort of questions to avoid (e.g. leading questions) etc which is important to be understood when cross-examining.

 

2. Vulnerable people are eligible for 'special measures' in the courtroom to help them give good quality evidence. These are part of the Youth Justice and Criminal Evidence Act 1999, and include things like allowing the evidence to be given via videolink, the removal of wigs and gowns in the courtroom, screening the witness from the defendant etc.

 

3. The National Autistic Society have produced a document called "Autism – a guide for criminal justice professionals" which may be helpful to you/the police. I think it is available as a download on their website.

 

What the police should be doing is understanding your son, working out exactly how to help him, establish what his needs are, if he'll need special assistance etc and doing what they can to achieve it. Unfortunately some police forces are better than others at doing this, and there is little legislation, understanding and training relating to all vulnerable people, let alone those with asd.

 

Regarding solicitors, it is highly likely that your son would qualify for legal aid - £250 an hour is crazy!!! If you haven't yet been to a solicitor you could always check out a few that offer free 1st interview, normally around 1/2 hour, and get some general advice. You never know, one of them might be really helpful and cheaper than the £250 one!

 

I hope that has helped a bit, if I find anything else I'll let you know.

 

Good luck <'>

[Kazzen161]

I don't know if these can help:

 

http://www.childrenslegalcentre.com/Legal+Advice/