Commission reviews six cases of parents convicted of killing their chi
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《英国医生杂志》
Only six cases of parents convicted of killing their children by courts in England and Wales are under consideration by the Criminal Cases Review Commission for possible referral to the Court of Appeal as a result of concerns over medical evidence.
The cases come from an 11 month review of nearly 300 cases by the attorney general, Lord Goldsmith, in the wake of an appeal court ruling a year ago quashing Angela Cannings?conviction for murdering her two baby sons (BMJ 2004;328:183).
Lord Goldsmith instituted the review after the appeal court said that no murder prosecutions should be brought in future against parents or carers for killing their children in cases where medical experts were in dispute about the cause of death and there was no other cogent evidence.
Lord Goldsmith, who reviewed all convictions for killing children under 2 years of age by parents or carers in the previous 10 years, found 28 cases out of 297 reviewed that raised "concerns."
Letters were written months ago to the legal advisers of all 28, but only six have come to the Criminal Cases Review Commission, which refers cases to the Court of Appeal.
A spokesman for the commission said that some lawyers in cases where there had not already been an unsuccessful appeal might have gone direct to the appeal court, and he knew of one such case. He added: "There has been some difficulty tracking down some of the people, bearing in mind some cases go back 10 years."
Announcing the final results of the review in the House of Lords on 21 December 2004, Lord Goldsmith said that only three of the cases involved sudden infant deaths, like those of the Cannings?children. Eight were cases of shaken baby syndrome, which raised concerns about medical evidence.
He had decided not to refer another 89 cases of shaken baby syndrome to the defendants?lawyers at the moment but would review the position after the Court of Appeal issued guidance next summer in four pending appeals relating to cases of shaken baby syndrome.
He told the Lords: "Although SBS cases differ in a number of respects from SIDS cases, there is a similarity in that there has been a growing medical controversy about the identification of the cause of the injuries.
"I am aware that the Court of Appeal is to consider four joined cases on SBS, in summer 2005 at the earliest, and there is the prospect that they will give general guidance on SBS issues. If that is the case then I will of course consider very carefully what conclusions the court draws from its considerations."(BMJ Clare Dyer?legal correspondent)
The cases come from an 11 month review of nearly 300 cases by the attorney general, Lord Goldsmith, in the wake of an appeal court ruling a year ago quashing Angela Cannings?conviction for murdering her two baby sons (BMJ 2004;328:183).
Lord Goldsmith instituted the review after the appeal court said that no murder prosecutions should be brought in future against parents or carers for killing their children in cases where medical experts were in dispute about the cause of death and there was no other cogent evidence.
Lord Goldsmith, who reviewed all convictions for killing children under 2 years of age by parents or carers in the previous 10 years, found 28 cases out of 297 reviewed that raised "concerns."
Letters were written months ago to the legal advisers of all 28, but only six have come to the Criminal Cases Review Commission, which refers cases to the Court of Appeal.
A spokesman for the commission said that some lawyers in cases where there had not already been an unsuccessful appeal might have gone direct to the appeal court, and he knew of one such case. He added: "There has been some difficulty tracking down some of the people, bearing in mind some cases go back 10 years."
Announcing the final results of the review in the House of Lords on 21 December 2004, Lord Goldsmith said that only three of the cases involved sudden infant deaths, like those of the Cannings?children. Eight were cases of shaken baby syndrome, which raised concerns about medical evidence.
He had decided not to refer another 89 cases of shaken baby syndrome to the defendants?lawyers at the moment but would review the position after the Court of Appeal issued guidance next summer in four pending appeals relating to cases of shaken baby syndrome.
He told the Lords: "Although SBS cases differ in a number of respects from SIDS cases, there is a similarity in that there has been a growing medical controversy about the identification of the cause of the injuries.
"I am aware that the Court of Appeal is to consider four joined cases on SBS, in summer 2005 at the earliest, and there is the prospect that they will give general guidance on SBS issues. If that is the case then I will of course consider very carefully what conclusions the court draws from its considerations."(BMJ Clare Dyer?legal correspondent)