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Government urged to change homicide laws, says HMCPSI

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HMCPSI’s Chief Inspector Anthony Rogers has written to the Law Commission following its call for evidence into the current homicide laws. The Chief Inspector has recommended that the government recategorise homicide into three tiers, which follows the Law Commission’s 2006 recommendations, as it will improve public confidence and victim’s experience in the criminal justice system.

The government is being urged by His Majesty’s Crown Prosecution Service Inspectorate (HMCPSI) to change homicide laws to improve public confidence and victims’ experience in the criminal justice system.

Following the Law Commission’s call for evidence for its review of homicide laws, HMCPSI’s Chief Inspector Anthony Rogers has recommended that the government should recategorise homicide into three tiers, as recommended by the Law Commission in 2006.

In his letter to the Law Commission,  HMCPSI’s Chief Inspector said that in the Valdo Calocane case the CPS complied with the law and their obligations. However, this did not necessarily meet the expectations of the victims’ families and how much influence they had on the outcomes of the case during what was a difficult process.

To increase public confidence and improve victims’ experience in the criminal justice system, HMCPSI has called for Government to consider categorising homicide into three tiers.

Introducing first and second degree murder categories could result in cases involving diminished responsibility being prosecuted as second degree murder rather than manslaughter.

Chief Inspector Anthony Rogers said:

“Murder under any circumstances is a horrendous crime. Families and loved ones are placed under immense pressure to deal with the criminal justice system, all while going through their own personal grief. “From our inspection into the Valdo Calocane case, we saw the families struggle to understand why the offender was sentenced to manslaughter and not murder. That is why we are calling on the government to amend the homicide law and ensure that victims and their families in these cases have better confidence that the criminal justice system will deliver justice.

The report is available online 2024-03-21-Calocane-report.pdf