High Court ruling on sex offenders register
19/12/2008
Thousands of convicted sex attackers may now be able to challenge their positions on the sex offenders register, after a landmark High Court case ruled that forcing them to remain on the list for life was a breach of their human rights.
F & Anor, R (on the application of) v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2008] EWHC 3170; [2008] WLR (D) 409; The Times January 23, 2009
> judgment
> Sex notification incompatible - The Times Law Report (23/01/09)
In the cases of F and Angus Thompson, three presiding judges at the High Court in London agreed that keeping the two offenders on the register for life, subject to the notification requirements under section 82 of the Sex Offenders Act 2003, without giving them the chance to prove that they were no longer a danger to the public (i.e. no statutory mechanism for review), would be “incompatible” with the claimants’ rights to respect for family and private life under article 8.
A declaration of incompatibility was granted in both cases.
Pete Weatherby appeared for Angus Thompson instructed by Irwin Mitchell Solicitors
Media coverage
> 19/12/08 - High Court frees thousands to challenge place on sex offenders register (The Times)
> 20/12/08 - Convicted sex attackers can challenge inclusion on offenders' register (The Independent)
