The Crisis in the Courts: Before and Beyond Covid

Godfrey, Barry ORCID: 0000-0002-4119-5137, Richardson, Jane C ORCID: 0000-0002-8230-7537 and Walklate, Sandra ORCID: 0000-0002-1628-9713 (2022) The Crisis in the Courts: Before and Beyond Covid. BRITISH JOURNAL OF CRIMINOLOGY, 62 (4). pp. 1036-1053.

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Official URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/bjc/azab110

Abstract

<jats:title>Abstract</jats:title> <jats:p>One year after the first COVID lockdown the backlog at the Magistrates’ and Crown Courts together totalled approximately half a million cases. This article reports on the impact of court delays on domestic abuse victims using data from the ESRC-funded ‘Shadow Pandemic’ project. Using this data as illustrative, the paper goes on to discuss the causes of delays in all criminal cases, challenging the assertion that COVID caused the backlog. Instead, the paper contends that austerity measures have been the underlying cause with COVID merely extending the scale of the crisis. The paper then questions whether post-COVID recovery plans are realistic, particularly in relation to any increase in remote hearings and out of court disposals. It concludes that a more fundamental shift needs to take place in dealing with criminal cases to enable speedier and more effective access to justice for victims of all crimes including domestic abuse.</jats:p>

Item Type:	Article
Uncontrolled Keywords:	Magistrates Courts, Crown Courts, COVID, domestic abuse, backlog, jury trial
Divisions:	Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences > School of Law and Social Justice
Depositing User:	Symplectic Admin
Date Deposited:	29 Jul 2022 14:50
Last Modified:	18 Jan 2023 20:54
DOI:	10.1093/bjc/azab110
Related URLs:	Author Publisher
URI:	https://livrepository.liverpool.ac.uk/id/eprint/3159837