100 signatures reached
To: Priti Patel
Provision of Compensation For Wrongful Imprisonment Of Innocent Individuals
Currently there is no compensation available to UK citizens that have either been wrongfully or maliciously imprisoned and held on remand should their case later be subject to no further action.
The reasoning given by the Government is that compensation is only payable to individuals that have actually been convicted but later were found to be innocent.
Why is this important?
This petition is important because the actual ramifications, perception and knock on effects for innocent individuals that for whatever reason find themselves held on remand in prison for weeks or months can be quite severe and life-changing. Many lose their jobs, friends, family, access to their children and much more.
It is simply just not good enough for the police to be able to imprison individuals, without the appropriate evidence out of malice or lack of skills whilst they conduct their investigations. Only to then rule no further action and the individual is left violated, unfairly punished, subjected to mental and sometimes physical trauma whilst in jail.
The criminal justice system must either get better or be fairer.
I can confirm that I have personally been through the above for no other reason than that of my colour and the fact that I lived in a middle class part of the UK. Hitherto, I had never even been arrested, but found myself labelled as a criminal and imprisoned with 6 potential offences that were then all proven to be false and/or fabricated.
I now am unemployed, spent my birthday and Fathers' Day in jail. My wife served me my divorce papers served to me in jail and restricted access to my two beautiful children. I also lost friends and family contacts.
