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Case with modern slavery and county lines connections referred to Crown Court 

Published:

A conviction of a 14-year-old boy with potential modern slavery and county lines connections has been referred to the Crown Court by the Criminal Cases Review Commission (CCRC).  

Mr FY was convicted of possession of a bladed article in October 2020. He was stopped by police and found to be in possession of a pair of scissors. He provided a false name. Later police enquiries found he had been missing from home for over a month.  

Upon advice, he pleaded guilty at a Youth Court and was sentenced to a 12-month referral order, which was later changed to an absolute discharge.  

The CCRC has considered that the defence under section 45 of the Modern Slavery Act 2015 would have been available for Mr FY when he was convicted, and therefore there is a real possibility the Crown Court will overturn this conviction. 

This application came to the CCRC from the charity ‘Just for Kids Law’ and we encourage anyone in similar circumstances to apply to us.  

[ENDS]  

Notes to Editor:  

  1. The press release has been anonymised due to the age of Mr FY.  
  1. The CCRC is an independent body set up under the Criminal Appeal Act 1995. It is responsible for independently reviewing suspected and alleged miscarriages of criminal justice in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. It is based in Birmingham and is funded by the Ministry of Justice.      
  1. There are currently 10 Commissioners who bring to the CCRC considerable experience from a wide variety of backgrounds. Commissioners are appointed by the monarch on the recommendation of the Prime Minister in accordance with the Office for the Commissioner for Public Appointments’ Code of Practice.  The Chairman, who is also a Commissioner, is not involved in the casework decision-making process.   
  1. The CCRC usually receives around 1,500 applications for reviews (convictions and/or sentences) each year. Since starting work in 1997, the CCRC has referred around 3% of applications to the appeal courts.      
  1. The CCRC considers whether, as a result of new evidence or argument, there is a real possibility that the conviction would not be upheld were a reference to be made. New evidence or argument is argument or evidence which has not been raised during the trial or on appeal.  Applicants should usually have appealed first. A case can be referred in the absence of new evidence or argument or an earlier appeal only if there are “exceptional circumstances”.      
  1. If a conviction is referred to the Crown Court, it is for the Court to decide whether to uphold the conviction.    
  1. More details about the role and work of the Criminal Cases Review Commission can be found at www.ccrc.gov.uk. The CCRC can be found on Twitter @ccrcupdate.