Courts fail CCTV test

A new report has revealed that HM Court Services isn’t able to show all CCTV footage in certain cases through lack of compatible viewing technology.

The report stated: “In order for a case to progress the police have to obtain the evidence, arrange for it to be reformatted and provide copies for the CPS and the defence. This evidence needs to be available with the full file as it is often conclusive, leading either to early guilty pleas or to early dismissals, thus avoiding the additional costs of a trial.”

The report has brought into sharp focus the fact that six out of 167 unsuccessful cases that were dropped or dismissed by the CPS or defence lawyers were because crucial evidence on VHS tape could not be viewed. The vast majority of CCTV footage is now supplied on DVD.