Top court bans "torture evidence" from UK hearings

[maddezmom]

LONDON (Reuters) - Britain's highest court ruled on Thursday that evidence obtained under torture cannot be used in British legal hearings, backing the case of eight terrorism suspects and civil rights campaigners.

A panel of seven Law Lords overthrew a decision by Britain's Appeal Court in 2004 that secret tribunals hearing cases relating to the terrorism suspects could consider evidence that would not be acceptable in a British criminal court trial.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20051208/ts_nm/security_britain_torture_dc;_

edited to add BBC link:

Lords reject torture evidence use
]Secret evidence which might have been obtained by torture cannot be used against terror suspects in UK courts, the law lords have ruled.
The ruling means the home secretary will have to review all cases where evidence from other countries may have been obtained in this way.

It is a victory for eight men who were previously detained without charge.

The government says it does not use evidence it knows to have been obtained by torture.


more:http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/4509530.stm

[Stockholm]

1. Damn you rule of law

damn you to hell.

[Greeby]

2. A bunch of mostly old, white, unelected appointees

And they are proving to be greater guardians of democracy than ten George Galloways :patriot:

[Vidar]

3. Thank you, Britain.

[deminks]

4. Now that is democracy on the march.

Here is a quote from the Reuters article:

"Torture is an unqualified evil. It can never be justified. Rather it must always be punished," said Lord Brown, one of seven Law Lords asked to rule on the issue.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20051208/ts_nm/security_britain_torture_dc

[greiner3]

5. Woo-hoo;

I may have to re-think my anglophobe tendencies!

[Torn_Scorned_Ignored]

6. Ruling Link

http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/ld200506/ldjudgmt/jd051208/aand-1.htm

[AlamoDemoc]

7. Good News indeed n/t