Was Bill Cosby innocent?Originally Posted by Sunnysideup
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Was Bill Cosby innocent?
We’ve got to remember that whoever it is should be treated innocent until proven Gylfi
Free man I think , what did Tarby do ?/
https://davidbanksmedialaw.com/2011/...w-to-avoid-it/
The Contempt of Court Act 1981 swept this aside and created the concept of ‘active’ proceedings. Proceedings are active when someone has been arrested; a warrant has been issued; they have been orally charged or an information has been laid. If none of these things has happened then contempt evaporates as a problem – publish whatever you like.
3. OK, proceedings ARE active, what should I avoid
Publishing something which creates a substantial risk of serious prejudice or serious impediment to those proceedings.
4. What does that mean?
Well, that’s a little subjective, but case law has shown the following to be a problem:
*Photos or descriptions where identity is at issue – ie the defendant claims it was not him who committed the crime and the prosecution has eyewitnesses whose testimony has to be tested by way of an ID parade. They must rely on their memory of the offence, not a photo helpfully published by the media. This action cause the record fine for contempt (so far) £80,000 for the Sun and £20,000 for Kelvin MacKenzie as editor.
*Assumptions of guilt – in crime reports, police have arrested A man, not THE man.
*Previous convictions – not normally allowed in as evidence, so don’t go informing the jury of them.
*Blackening a defendant’s character – if the prosecution do it in front of the jury, that’s fine. Just don’t do it yourself as they await trial.
5. Does this mean a media blackout about a crime if proceedings are active?
No. The CCA 1981 was drafted in response to the Sunday Times coverage of the Thalidomide scandal, which had been found in contempt under the old common law. The ST took an appeal all the way to the European Court of Human Rights, which ruled that the common law contempt, as applied, was in breach of the ST’s right to freedom of speech. So the CCA 1981 includes a Section 5 defence of ‘discussion of public affairs’. So, for example, a euthanasia trial does not shut down all mention or discussion in the media of the issues of euthanasia. But such discussion should avoid direct commentary on the trial.
ABSOLUTELY NOT.
Cosby got off on a technicality based around promises made to Cosby about what he was going to be charged with
https://www.nytimes.com/2021/07/01/a...urned-why.html
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