New legislation, to go through parliament in the next few weeks, will allow TV cameras into Crown Courts in England and Wales for the first time.
Trials will not be televised as they are in countries such as the US, however, rather the cameras will be for the filming of judges’ sentencing remarks in serious high-profile criminal cases.
The judiciary, broadcasters, and government have endorsed the move.
The legislation marks a radical change to the operation of open justice and, although whole trials will not be televised, it nonetheless marks a significant extension.
TV cameras will film judges passing sentence in murder, sexual offences, terrorism and other serious cases at Crown Courts, including the Old Bailey.
Filming in Scottish Courts has been permitted since 1992, subject to permissions and conditions, however it wasn’t until 2012 that the first sentencing was filmed.
The concern in England and Wales has always been that the broadcasting of trials could deter victims, witnesses and jurors from taking part, without whom the trial process would not be able to take place.
As such, only the judge will be seen on camera as they deliver their sentencing remarks. No one else involved will be filmed.
Justice Secretary Robert Buckland denied that the move would be a “blind stumble” into an “undesirable OJ Simpson-style scenario”.
Talking on TalkRadio, he said it was “about information rather than entertainment” and that the judiciary fully supported the plans.
While the filming may be “live”, with a short time delay to avoid breaking any reporting restrictions or other errors, it is more likely envisaged that the judge’s sentencing remarks will be recorded for later use in news broadcasts and online. There will also be a website where the full sentencing remarks of any case that is broadcast will be made available to the public.
All Crown Court staff involved in cases where filming takes place will receive new guidance and training.
The legislation is expected to take around three months to work through parliament, meaning it will be late spring or early summer before the first broadcasts take place.
The presentation to parliament follows a successful three-month pilot allowing not-for-broadcast sentencing remarks to be filmed.
The Lord Chief Justice, Lord Burnett, said: “It is important that the justice system and what happens in our courts is as transparent as possible.
“My hope is that there will be regular broadcasting of the remarks in high profile cases, and that will improve public understanding.”
According to Caroline Goodwin QC, chairwoman of the Criminal Bar Association, the move would “bring greater transparency and a better public understanding of the criminal justice system”.
She added, however, that: “Nothing must compromise the interests of justice, the primacy of a fair trial, and respecting the interests of vulnerable witnesses, witnesses generally and defendants,” stressing the importance of restricting filming to sentencing remarks.
While many in the judiciary support the move, it is far from unanimous. Bar Council chairwoman Amanda Pinto QC said: “If the public see judges’ faces in the living room on television and are able to identify them more readily then, unfortunately, they are more likely to be personally attacked, and possibly details published about them which should not be.”
