Human Rights On Bail Essay

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The impact of human rights on bail Article 5 of the European Convention on Human Rights provides the right to liberty and security, subject only to lawful arrest or detention under certain other circumstances, such as arrest on suspicion of a crime or imprisonment in fulfillment of a sentence. The article also provides the right to be informed in a language one understands of the reasons for the arrest and any charge against them, the right of prompt access to legal representation to determine the legality of one 's arrest or detention and to trial within a reasonable time or release pending trial, and the right to compensation in the case of arrest or detention. Failure to do so would be in violation of this article and create a possibility …show more content…

Though there is precedent and the right the right to use discretion, this definition may not be deemed negative in nature because it helps enhance certainty within the law and protect individual rights. Judges have broad discretion to make release and bail decisions and they exercise it due to their individual concerns, prior experience and duty to protect public safety. Therefore, one can state it is somewhat can act as a system of checks and balances. As a result, judges are a part of the judiciary and play a serious role in the granting of bail. They are given judicial discretion but they expected to remain impartial, independent and free from bias. Justice must not be seen as a popularity contest and judicial independence helps in the protection from public outrage due to abuse on issues of public policy .Where there is impartiality there is objectivity. One must consider what is moral and just in the eyes of the …show more content…

In R v Bournemouth Justices, ex parte Cross, Griffin and Pamment [1989] , the point of issue was whether conditions could be imposed on bail for a non-imprisonable offences. The defendants were released on bail on condition that they did not attend any hunt meeting in England and Wales before their next appearance. Following this incident they were arrested again for breach of this condition and remanded in custody. The Divisional Court stated that the condition had been validly imposed. Pamment indicated that in certain circumstances he would intervene to prevent a hunt being carried on illegally and that was taken by the justices as a refusal to agree to the imposition of the condition. The justices were of the view that it was necessary to prevent the commission of further offences and they were entitled to impose it by virtue of s.3(6) of the Bail Act