Hannah Foster murder case trial
November 27, 2008
Trevor and Hilary Foster have fought a five-and-a-half year long battle to get justice for their eldest child. This was after the accused, Maninder Pal Singh Kohli, managed to flee to India. As they spoke of their relief after he was finally behind bars in Britain, the parents protested against a life sentence that could see him getting released in 22 years.
Mr Foster stated: “We simply cannot accept how a stranger can abduct, rape and murder your teenage daughter – still a child in the eyes of the law – and yet not end his days in prison.”
Kohli was convicted at Winchester Crown Court unanimously. Mrs Foster and her other daughter Sarah – both broke down and sobbed uncontrollably in the court. In a statement that was read out by her sister, Mrs Foster told how her daughter had been left feeling ‘terrified and alone with an evil stranger.’
It read: “She would have been frozen with fear, unable to run or fight – the proverbial lamb to the slaughter.”
Mrs Foster also coped with breast cancer even as she fought for justice, stated her bright daughter would have become a doctor this year had she been alive. In March 2003, Kohli raped her, strangled her and then dumped her on the outskirts of Southampton
A mammoth database of phone, e-mail traffic planned
October 17, 2008
According to a senior law enforcement officer, as part of the high-tech strategy to fight terrorism, the British government is seriously considering setting up a database of all phone and e-mail traffic in the country. In Home secretary Jacqui Smith’s words;
“Britain’s police and security services needed new ways to collect and store records of phone calls, e-mail messages and Internet traffic.
Technological changes have resulted in an online world that is complex and fragmented. New strategies are needed to find some way to collect that data and store it.
Even before the take off, the idea was immediately condemned by the opposition politicians and liberties groups. The UK’s independent reviewer of terrorism laws, Lord Carlile, stated;
“The government should not be allowed to set up a vast data warehouse.”
If having all your information known to the government so easily isn’t bad enough, just imagine the implications it could have in ensuring the security of the data. If it does go ahead let’s just hope they have some good disaster recovery procedures in place, especially after last months security blunder.
Home Officials said one option under consideration was the creation of a database that could store all the phone numbers dialed, websites visited and e-mail addresses contacted by every one in Britain without storage of the contents. But for Chris Huhne, the domestic affairs spokesman for the opposition Liberal Democrats, said;
“The proposed step amounted to hatching Orwellian plans for a vast database of our private communications.”
Polygraph tests to be made compulsory for sex offenders
September 26, 2008
In an attempt to make the streets a safer place, the Ministry of Justice is planning on implementing a series of tests which will determine whether sex offenders with previous records are still a threat to the community. The tests, which will last for approximately 90 minutes, will monitor the heart rate, sweat levels, blood pressure and brain activity of the subject. These polygraph tests will be made compulsory in some areas of England and Wales, and although they will help monitor these offenders, they will not be used as courtroom evidence.
These tests may very well be useful in keeping track of offenders with former records, as previous attempts showed that almost 80% of the test prompted admissions from the offenders. The locations for the pilot which is said to be a three year long process, have not yet been decided, but sources say that they will be around the areas which lie east of England and West Midlands. If the pilot proves to be a success, it will be implemented all over the country.
This in turn, could also be helpful to previous sex offenders hoping to wipe their slate clean, as it will prove their innocence and will expose attempts by them to mislead probation officers. All in all, the implementation of these tests will make for safer streets and hopefully lower cases of molestation and other sex related crimes.
Another data security breach reported
September 17, 2008
Four laptops have been misplaced from a government department, which deals with bankrupt firms, according to the Insolvency Service sources. This is another data security breach that would cause some embarrassment to the government.
Three of the stolen laptops had not much data on them, but the fourth had personal material about former directors of over 120 insolvent firms and also insolvency practitioners, creditors as well as employees of the firms. “The theft of laptops has been reported to Greater Manchester police. They are investigating,” stated the Insolvency Service that has set up a telephone helpline for those concerned with the data loss.
Over the last one year, many government departments have encountered data security breaches. Earlier this month, personal details of prison staff in England and Wales were leaked through a government contractor. Police were called in after a consultancy company lost in August a computer memory stick that contained the personal details of all prisoners as well as the details of thousands of serious offenders and those on drug rehabilitation.
Prime Minister Gordon Brown had ordered an urgent review last year after HM Revenue and Customs lost data on 25 million people.
Three charged for plot to murder Brown.
August 29, 2008
According to reports by The Telegraph, three British Muslims were charged for threatening to murder Prime Minister Gordon Brown.
A plot to assassinate Gordon Brown was foiled in time to prevent any harm. Ishaq Kanmi, a 22 year old youth, from Blackburn, Lancashire has been charged with soliciting murder and belonging to, or claiming to belong to Al Qaeda. The report goes on to mention that he is also facing charges for;
“inviting support for a proscribed organization and for disseminating terrorist publications.”
Abbas Iqbal, a 23 year old youth who is also from Blackburn, is charged with disseminating terrorist publications and also possession of an article for the commission, preparation or instigation of an act of terrorism.
The third person to be charged for the same offence is Ilyas Iqbal a 21 year old youth. He is also charged for making a record of information likely to be useful by a person committing an act of terrorism
Two of the arrested men were preparing to leave the country at Manchester Airport when the arrest took place on 14th of August, while the third was arrested at work in Accrington, Lancashire.
A fourth was arrested on Tuesday morning in Blackburn. A fifth arrest is currently on the cards.
The timely culmination of an operation led by the Lancashire police, supported by officers from the Greater Manchester Police Counter Terrorism Unit led to the arrests, thus preventing the suspects from fleeing the country.
Home Secretary expresses commitment to further reductions in the crimes
July 17, 2008
The UK Home Office experts state that the figures for Police-recorded crime invariably mirror trends in falling crime as witnessed throughout the developed world. According to Home Secretary Jacqui Smith, the government’s priority is building on what ‘we have achieved so that everyone feels improvement.’
Jacqui Smith added: “We are firmly committed to delivering further reductions in the crimes, which most concern people, particularly violence involving guns and knives.” She also acknowledged ‘knives are still being used in the most serious violent incidents’. The Youth Crime Action plan that has just been published is part of a wider, comprehensive package of measures for tackling the problem.
Serious violent crimes that involve a blade have earlier been bundled with other attacks. However, officers have recorded them separately since April last year in light of mounting public concern. Last year police recorded 22,151 offences that involved knives in England and Wales, comprising grievous bodily harm, woundings, robbery and attempted murder.
Prime Minister Gordon Mr Brown, speaking about the knife crime figures, stated he wanted to make carrying a blade as ‘unacceptable’ (just) as having a gun on the streets.
Police-recorded crime falls in England and Wales, latest data shows
July 17, 2008
Police-recorded crime fell almost 9 per cent in England and Wales in the 12 month period to March, according to the latest figures.
The just released statistics including the first ever reliable data for knife crime indicated there were nearly 22,000 offences last year. They also suggest that people generally still believe that the rate is going up even while the risk of being a victim is now at its lowest ever level.
The Home Secretary, Jacqui Smith, stated she was “extremely pleased” with the overall reduction in the police-recorded crime. The annual crime report for the year 2007-2008 reveals the longest recorded phase of falling crime – down 48 per cent from 1995. It shows there were around five million recorded crimes. All the main categories showed a fall. However, gun crime was up 2 per cent and murder was up 3 per cent.
Home Office experts state the figures indicate that most offences take place in hotspots. They are not evenly spread across England and Wales.
New plan for dealing with knife crime
July 11, 2008
Prime Minister Gordon Brown is expected to defend his government’s plans to tackle knife crime that have been derided by the Liberal Democrats as “half-baked”. Jacqui Smith, the Home Secretary, has already unveiled proposals for using shock tactics against all young offenders who are caught in possession of a knife.
Meanwhile, senior police officer Alf Hitchcock has given a call for ‘non-military national service’ for offending teenagers. He also stated knife crime victims as well as offenders were now getting younger.
The home secretary’s proposals for youth crime check in England and Wales are to be outlined in more depth and detail when the government unveils its youth crime plan. Ms Smith’s new proposals will mean that youths who are caught carrying knives will be made to go to accident/emergency wards, to witness the consequences of stabbings. They will be made to meet victims’ families as well as make prison visits to individuals convicted of knife offences. She stated: “I am (very) keen that we make people face up to the consequences.”
Policing ‘through the lens of the public’ forms core of the reforms agenda
June 18, 2008
Elderly and disabled people as well as other victims of crime who may fear reprisals are likely to get anonymity in court as part of a holistic review that looks to improve sagging confidence in the UK’s criminal justice system.
They could be allowed to furnish evidence from behind a screen; they can even have their voice altered in the same way that those who have suffered sexual attacks get special measures for protecting their identities automatically.
The proposals are from Louise Casey, British government’s crime and communities adviser. They are included in her review of crime and communities. Casey stated the authorities should look at policing ‘through the lens of the public’ when making reforms. She added: “The public deserve to have their voice heard right across the system.”
According to her, the public needed to be provided more information about what had been done to tackle crime in their area. She suggested a monthly bulletin on how their priorities were actually being tackled.
The board overseeing child protection work probes seven-year-old Khyra Ishaq’s death
May 24, 2008
The Birmingham board overseeing child protection work has launched an independent inquiry into seven-year-old Khyra Ishaq’s death. She is alleged to have been starved to death at her home.
The Safeguarding Children Board in Birmingham stated it had ‘commenced a serious case review and an independent examination into the suspicious circumstances surrounding Khyra’s death.’ The board mentioned in a statement: “The findings of this review are going to be made public in due course after the completion of the criminal process.”
While two people have been found guilty in the case so far, Birmingham Perry Barr MP Khalid Mahmood has further demanded a careful review of any contacts of the social service with the girl’s family. The council has also granted an emergency protection order for the other five siblings of the deceased. The two accused, Angela Gordon, 33 and Junaid Abuhamza, 29, Khyra’s mother and stepfather, respectively appeared before the magistrates of the city and have been put to custody till May 28.
