Criminals with more than one conviction get green light to dodge records check High Court supports legal challenge over multiple convictions in case which could have far-reaching ramifications Thousands of convicted criminals with more than one offence on their record could be free to work with children and vulnerable adults following a controversial court ruling.
Lawyers for a 47-year-old woman, known only as Miss P, and a 51-year-old-man, Mr A, told the High Court they were being unfairly haunted throughout their lives by convictions for minor criminal offences committed earlier in life.
Judges ruled the current system for disclosing criminal records was in breach of the “right to private and family life” as set out in Labour’s Human Rights Act.
The Government has already amended the law in 2013 to allow minor offenders a “second chance”.
MPs agreed in 2013 to allow the Disclosure and Barring Service, formerly the Criminal Records Bureau, to filter out offenders with a single conviction when applications were made to work in sensitive jobs such as teaching and nursing.
"This ruling will bring reassurance for the very many people who have had their ambitions dashed because of very small mistakes they made years, or even decades, in the past."
James Welch, Liberty
The new legal victory indicates the 2013 decision was only the thin end of the wedge – as the latest ruling says offenders with more than one minor conviction should also be filtered out.
Serious offences will not be affected but the ruling could mean offenders with convictions for theft or common assault are no longer flagged by criminal records checks.
Lord Justice McCombe and Mrs Justice Carr heard Miss P shoplifted a sandwich and a 99p book in 1999 during a period of her life when she was suffering from an undiagnosed mental illness, leading to two convictions.
Miss P wanted to work as a teaching assistant but was unable to do so because of the convictions.
Mr A was 17 when he was convicted in 1981 of the theft of a coat from a market stall and fined £30, and the following year was fined for theft of a motorcycle.
Mr A has since qualified as an accountant and become a company finance director.
The court heard he wanted to ensure he would never have to disclose his past offences, of which his family are unaware.
According to the judges' ruling, Kate Gallafent, for the Home Office, said Parliament had “drawn an acceptable, non-arbitrary line requiring disclosure, on a permanent basis, of more than one conviction".
“It is, she argues, entirely rational to adopt the position that a first time offender should be given a ‘second chance’ but no more,” it added.
James Welch, legal director for Liberty, which backed Miss P’s case, said: "This ruling will bring reassurance for the very many people who have had their ambitions dashed because of very small mistakes they made years, or even decades, in the past.
"The Government must urgently fix this broken system.”
In 2014-15 nearly 98,000 people who applied to for an enhanced criminal records disclosure were filtered out because they had only one conviction.
The number which could be filtered out because they have two convictions is also thought to run into tens of thousands.
The court will hear further argument before making a final declaration on the case.
source:
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/ ... check.html
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