Jury-less trials would ‘impact the rights of every citizen in Scotland’, according to most senior woman at the Scottish Bar
Nicola Sturgeon’s plan to scrap jury trials for rape cases would see Scotland follow in the footsteps of the Nazis, the country’s senior female lawyer has warned.
Frances McMenamin KC, the most senior woman at the Scottish Bar, said that she had grave concerns over proposals that would see judges decide guilt in rape allegations and for other serious sexual crimes, and claimed they they would impact the rights of every citizen in the country.
A Scottish government consultation has raised the prospect of abolishing juries for serious sexual offences such as rape and attempted rape, which have a far lower conviction rate than other offences.
The Lord Advocate, Dorothy Bain, has backed the idea of a pilot, claiming “radical” action was needed to help clear a backlog of cases which she said was “disproportionately” harming women and girls.