Is the criminal justice system working for victims?

A leading law scholar who specialises in studying the treatment of victims in the UK's criminal justice system will examine the successes and shortcomings of the UK's 'pro-victim agenda' in a free public lecture this month.

Professor Matthew Hall, from the Lincoln Law School at the University of Lincoln, will argue that measures introduced by Government 13 years ago which aimed to put victims of crime 'at the heart' of the criminal justice process in England and Wales are failing due to political agendas.

His lecture, Victims in the criminal justice systems: are they really being 'brought in from the cold'? will take place on Thursday 26th November 2015 from 5.30pm at the University's main Brayford Pool Campus. Registration is free but booking is essential.

"It is now some thirteen years since this pledge first materialised in New Labour's 2002 Justice for All White Paper," said Professor Hall. "We have seen the extension of special measures such as video-links, screens, and pre-recorded evidence, as well as specialist government appointments.

"It is hard to dispute that many victims are now receiving a far better level of service and support within and beyond the criminal justice system than in the days when the victim was routinely characterised as the 'forgotten man of the criminal justice system'.

"But victim policy still reflects underlying political agendas rather than a desire to 'do right' by those who suffer crime, and in more recent years, the pace of reform has slowed . This lecture will examine some of the shortcomings of the apparent pro-victim agenda."

Professor Matthew Hall joined the University of Lincoln from the University of Sheffield in 2014. His talk is the latest free-to-attend event in the Inaugural Lecture Series by Lincoln's College of Social Science, which invites new academic staff to share their insights with wider audiences.