Rotherham 12 member slams Labour‘s plan to scrap juries

Rotherham 12 defendant Abrar Javid (Pic: Socialist Worker)

An Asian man who was found not guilty for defending himself against fascists has slammed Labour justice secretary David Lammy’s plans to scrap the bulk of jury trials.

Lammy wants to scrap juries for the vast majority of people accused of a crime.

If his plans go ahead, they will create a new tier of courts in England and Wales.

These would sit between a magistrates’ court and the crown court, where cases are currently decided by a jury.

Trials for so-called “either-or” offences like violent disorder would be heard by magistrates or in the new form of judge-only court. 

The move could mean a very different ­outcome in cases such as the Rotherham 12.

The Asian men were tried for violent disorder after defending themselves against fascist marchers in the south Yorkshire town in 2015.

Two pleaded guilty. The other ten were unanimously found not guilty by the jury. They could have been jailed for up to five years.

Abrar Javid, one of the Rotherham 12 told Socialist Worker, “I’m in favour of keeping juries. Leaving decisions in the hands of judges is not ­conducive to a fair trial.

“When you have a jury with a mixed demographic there is more chance of being heard.

“They are more reflective of communities, they might have similar experiences and understand the complexities and nuances.

“In my case, I was concerned it would be an unfair ­hearing due to the political and media bias against Muslims in general.

“However, the jury understood the context and background of the case and showed empathy.”

Judges come from very different backgrounds to most people. Only about 5 percent of court judges in Britain are Asian and just over 1 percent are black.

Two-thirds of senior judges went to private schools, ­compared to 7 percent of the general population.

Abrar said judges often come from a background in the prosecution and they “see things through the prism of guilt”.

Matt Foot, the co-director of the legal charity Appeal, said that these moves would “inevitably” lead to more miscarriages of justice, ­especially for black and Asian defendants.