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Unfitness to Plead Consultation Responses - Law Commission ...

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From: GEOFF SEARLE<br />

Sent: 06 January 2011 15:58<br />

To: LAWCOM Criminal <strong>Law</strong><br />

Subject: RE: Unfit <strong>to</strong> plead<br />

Helena,<br />

The case I had dealings with was a young man of 20 and an IQ of 84 [i.e. low but not<br />

LD], who was persuaded by a <strong>to</strong> drive him & a Learning Disabled Adult<br />

around Dorset where the would persuade the LD adult <strong>to</strong> set fire <strong>to</strong> things.<br />

He didn’t understand why he had committed a crime and was in any case so<br />

overwhelmingly anxious that he couldn’t pay attention <strong>to</strong> proceedings or effectively<br />

participate [we checked – and this wasn’t faked]. So there was a fitness <strong>to</strong> plead<br />

hearing with a jury and the two psychiatric opinions concurred & he was found unfit<br />

<strong>to</strong> plead – but he was disposed sensibly <strong>to</strong> community supervision.<br />

To be honest everyone involved in this case knew that the responsible individual was<br />

never charged – denied everything & it was the two vulnerable individuals who were<br />

in court – so there was unspoken agreement <strong>to</strong> not punish the least culpable<br />

participants & fitness <strong>to</strong> plead was the mechanism by which we achieved it.<br />

Geoff

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