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| More victim families may get say | More victim families may get say |
| (about 2 hours later) | |
| A scheme which allows relatives of victims to speak at murder or manslaughter trials may be extended, the government has said. | |
| Since last April, 21 families have chosen to make statements in a pilot scheme running in five Crown Courts. | Since last April, 21 families have chosen to make statements in a pilot scheme running in five Crown Courts. |
| Constitutional Affairs minister Harriet Harman said if the 12-month experiment is a success, it may be adopted by other courts and apply to more crimes. | |
| But some judges fear statements make an already emotional situation worse. | |
| The Victim's Advocate scheme allows relatives of victims the chance to address the court - before sentencing - about the impact of the death. | The Victim's Advocate scheme allows relatives of victims the chance to address the court - before sentencing - about the impact of the death. |
| Road deaths | |
| Ms Harman said until now bereaved relatives have had to sit at the back of the court "in complete silence". | |
| "How it feels to be the victim's relatives is that everybody speaks about the person who is dead except the person who is affected most," she told BBC News. | |
| "If it helps just a bit, I think the legal system should be prepared to cope with it." | |
| To impose on the judge an increase in the emotional atmosphere as a result of this kind of response is to make the judge's role that much more difficult John Samuels, of the Council of Circuit Judges | To impose on the judge an increase in the emotional atmosphere as a result of this kind of response is to make the judge's role that much more difficult John Samuels, of the Council of Circuit Judges |
| A spokesman for the Department of Constitutional Affairs said causing death by dangerous driving was among the offences which could be included in the scheme. | |
| The scheme has the backing of a number of victim support groups but John Samuels, a member of the Council of Circuit Judges, argued it can make their job more difficult. | The scheme has the backing of a number of victim support groups but John Samuels, a member of the Council of Circuit Judges, argued it can make their job more difficult. |
| "It's the judges' responsibility to lower the emotional temperature," he said. | "It's the judges' responsibility to lower the emotional temperature," he said. |
| "Judges are human and to impose on the judge an increase in the emotional atmosphere as a result of this kind of response is to make the judge's role that much more difficult." | "Judges are human and to impose on the judge an increase in the emotional atmosphere as a result of this kind of response is to make the judge's role that much more difficult." |
| But Ms Harman said: "The judges that hear murder cases are at the top of their profession. | |
| "We can be confident of their judgement and professionalism - that's why they are doing their job." | |
| London's Old Bailey and crown courts in Birmingham, Cardiff, Manchester and Winchester are part of the scheme. | London's Old Bailey and crown courts in Birmingham, Cardiff, Manchester and Winchester are part of the scheme. |