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The defendants were acquitted, and there is a widespread feeling that the guilty may have got away with a serious and repulsive crime. Now see the Criminal Justice Act 2003 (above); and see R v Dunlop [2006] discussed in chapter 7. 43 THE CRIMINAL COURTS AND COURT PROCEDURE ■ that a ministerial priority should be established for all police services ‘to increase trust and confidence in policing among minority ethnic communities’; ■ that a Freedom of Information Act should apply to all areas of policing, subject only to a ‘substantial harm’ test for withholding information; ■ that the Race Relations Acts should apply to all police officers; ■ that the CPS and the police should take particular care to recognise any evidence of racial motivation in a crime.

The Crown Court is part of the Supreme Court of Judicature (consisting of the Court of Appeal, the High Court of Justice and the Crown Court). There are three tiers: ■ Queen’s Bench Division (QBD) judges trying Class 1 offences (murder, treason, etc); ■ second tier courts may have QBD judges or circuit judges and try Class 2 offences (rape, manslaughter, etc); ■ third tier courts try Class 3 offences, with circuit judges or recorders in charge. Recorders are part time judges appointed on a temporary basis.

28 THE JUDICIARY AND JUDICIAL DECISION-MAKING ■ The golden rule provides that words should be given their literal meaning as far as possible unless this would lead to absurdity or an affront to public policy. It is used to prevent undue harshness that would result from the application of the literal rule. For example, in Re Sigsworth [1935], the golden rule was used to prevent the defendant from inheriting his mother’s property after he murdered her. The Administration of Estates Act 1925 provided that an estate should pass to the issue (children) of a person who died without making a will but the golden rule was used in preference to the literal rule to prevent the absurd situation in which a child who murdered a parent would inherit.