Acquittals: Compensation
The question
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of using alternative methods of determining eligibility for compensation in the event of an acquittal following a re-trial.
Answered by Heidi Alexander
The Ministry of Justice is responsible for the statutory Miscarriages of Justice Application Service (MOJAS). Individuals who have had their convictions quashed in an out of time appeal are eligible to apply for compensation, including those who have subsequently been acquitted of all offences at a retrial. The Law Commission is currently undertaking a review of the criminal appeals process which includes MOJAS. I will be considering their findings once their review is complete.
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