SCCRC Management

Scott Law · SCCRC Management

SCCRC Management.

It is interesting to see how many of the Members of SCCRC actually sit asmembers of other Organisations or Judges, How many are members of the Law Society and like sinclair still sit on Committees within the judicial system.

Sir Gerald Gordon has sat on an actual appeal while still being a member of SCCRC, Is this what they class as independent of the Judicial System ?

The appeal in question can be found here:

http://www.scotcourts.gov.uk/opinions/2324_00.html

2001 while he was a member from it's inception in 1999, Clearly this appeal could have went before SCCRC and he cannot be classed as independent from the Judicial System.

Management

The Board of the Commission is responsible for the overall strategic direction and performance of the Commission. It is responsible for determining whether or not to refer cases to the High Court. The Board Members, along with the Chief Executive, Mr Gerard Sinclair, are collectively responsible for ensuring the appropriate use of public funds in relation to our business. The Chief Executive is responsible for the management of the Commission and the day to day operation of the Commission. The Board of the Commission is chaired by The Very Reverend Dr Graham Forbes, CBE.

The Very Reverend Dr Graham Forbes, CBE

The Very Reverend Dr Graham Forbes has been Provost of St Mary's Cathedral, Edinburgh since 1990. He is a Member of the General Medical Council and chairs the Department of Health's UK Committee on Ethical Aspects of Pandemic Influenza. He also chairs the Scottish Executive's Working Group on Blood Borne Viruses and Mandatory Testing. Previous public appointments include: HM (lay) Inspector of Constabulary for Scotland; NHS Quality Improvement Scotland; the Scottish Consumer Council; the Parole Board for Scotland; the Scottish Board of the Royal College of Anaesthetists; the Scottish Community Education Council and the Edinburgh Board of Manpower Services Commission. Provost Forbes has been a Member of the SCCRC since its inception in 1999, he accepted the position of Chairman from January 2002.

Sir Gerald Gordon Q.C.

Sir Gerald Gordon CBE Q.C. was a Sheriff from 1976 to 1999 and a temporary High Court Judge until June 2004. He is the editor of the Scottish Criminal Case Reports and editor of Renton and Brown's Criminal Procedure. Sir Gerald was Professor of Scots law at Edinburgh University from 1972-1976 and Head of the Department of Criminal law and Criminology there from 1965-1972. He practised as an advocate from 1953-1959 and was Procurator Fiscal Depute from 1960-1965. Sir Gerald has been a Member of SCCRC since its inception in April 1999.

Mr David Belfall

Mr Belfall is a retired civil servant. He spent the first half of his career in the Home Office working on policing, criminal justice, prisons and immigration issues and the second half in the Scottish Office/Scottish Executive concluding as Head of the Housing and Area Regeneration Group. He is currently Chairperson of Glasgow Council for the Voluntary Sector and a Non-Executive Member of the NHS Lothian Board. Mr Belfall has been a Board Member of SCCRC since 1 January 2002.

Mr Graham Bell Q.C.

Since he was called to the Bar, Graham Bell Q.C. has been instructed regularly in the Criminal Appeal Court. As both Junior and Senior Counsel he has conducted many important appeals. From 1998-2000 he was an Advocate Depute and represented the Crown in the Appeal Court. From 2000 onwards he has acted ad hoc for the Crown.

Professor Brian Caddy BSc, PhD, CChem MRSC

Professor Caddy took a degree in chemistry from Sheffield University in 1960 and a PhD in 1963 before taking up an MRC Fellowship at StrathclydeUniversity. He was appointed lecturer in forensic science in 1966 and eventually became Professor of Forensic Science in 1993. He was a founder member of the European Network of Forensic Science Institutes and the European Academy of Forensic Sciences, was President of the Forensic Science Society, editor of its journal “Science and Justice” a member of the executive committee and now external verifier for the Council for the Registration of Forensic Practitioners (A Lord Chancellors appointment). He has undertaken reports for the Home Secretary in relation to Laboratory contamination and also the Damilola Taylor case. Professor Caddy has lectured on various aspects of the forensic sciences in over 20 different countries including Russia, China, Japan, Taiwan, Australia and New Zealand USA, Argentina, Indonesia etc.

His research interests extend from toxicology and drugs of abuse to firearms discharge residues and trace explosives analysis. A main interest is in raising and maintaining standards in forensic science practice this arising from his investigations into the “Birmingham 6” and other high profile bombing cases.

Mr Stewart Campbell

Mr Campbell is the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) Director, Scotland. He has been an HSE Inspector for over 30 years and has worked in Aberdeen, London, Bootle and Kent where he was HSE's Principal Inspector during the construction of the Channel Tunnel. He has extensive investigation experience and has prosecuted both in England and Scotland. He is the HSE independent member of the Potters Bar train derailment Investigation Board. In 2005 he served as a member of the Expert Group on Corporate Homicide. Mr Campbell has a strong interest and involvement in European approaches and comparisons.

Mr Gerard McClay LLB Dip L.P.

Mr McClay has been a solicitor in private practice for over 20 years, working solely in criminal court work and having extensive experience of all types of criminal cases from District Court up to High Court. Mr McClay was an assistant with two firms until he was appointed as a partner in 1990. In 1995 he set up his own firm and has worked as a sole practitioner ever since.

Until 2007, Mr McClay was a member of the Glasgow Drug Court Management Team. Glasgow Drug Court deals with offenders who have drug problems and tries through treatment orders to assist the offender with their problems by using varied treatment orders and consequently to try to reduce their offending.

Mr McClay was a member of the Glasgow Bar Association (GBA) Executive Committee for 7 years, holding the post of President from 2005-2006 and had previously held the posts of Secretary and Vice President. Mr McClay is now an Honorary Member of the Association.

Mr Gerard Sinclair LLB (Hons) Dip L.P. N.P.

Gerard Sinclair is the Chief Executive and Principal Solicitor of the SCCRC, and took up this appointment on 30 June 2003. He is responsible for advising the Commission on the discharge of its responsibilities under both the legislation and the Management Statement.

Prior to joining the Commission, Mr Sinclair was a solicitor in private practice for 18 years, and a senior partner with a law firm in Glasgow. He is qualified in both Scottish and English Law, and his legal career included a wide variety of criminal, civil and commercial litigation. He has previously served as a member of the Council of the Law Society of Scotland, and is presently Vice-Convener of the Law Society’s Criminal Law Committee. He was appointed a part-time sheriff in June 2006.

Mr Sinclair is also the Accountable Officer for the Commission. He is responsible for the proper stewardship and expenditure of the public funds received by the Commission and for the day to day management of the Commission. He is responsible for ensuring the efficient and expeditious progressing of the Commission's cases.

Chris Reddick MIIA – Director of Corporate Services

After studying at the Civil Service College Sunningdale, Mr Reddick became a Member of the Institute of Internal Auditors (MIIA) by examination in March 2002. He also achieved the Certificate & Diploma in Public Sector Audit & Accounting in 1998 after with CIPFA (NI)

Mr Reddick commenced a career in audit in 1995, working for the NI Court Service internal audit team, and was involved in the review of court systems and operations. He was subsequently employed by the Scottish Legal Aid Board, to look at compliance with the Code of Practice for the provision of Criminal Legal Assistance. In October 2001 he moved to a private sector audit and risk management firm as Business Assurance Manager (North).

Mr Reddick took up his position with the Commission in September 2005, where he is responsible for managing the Commission’s corporate systems such as finance, human resources, information technology, procurement and administration.

Robin Johnston LLB (Hons) LLM Dip L.P. N.P. – Senior Legal Officer

Following his graduation with a first class honours LLB, Mr Johnston worked for two years as a research assistant at the University of Dundee, before going on to obtain his diploma in legal practice. He qualified as a solicitor in 1996 and worked for a number of years in private practice before joining the Commission at its inception in 1999.

Mr Johnston was responsible for the Commission’s first reference to the High Court, Jerzy Boncza Tomaszewski, and for the investigation which led to the acquittals of Thomas Campbell and Joseph Steele in 2004. More recently, he headed the team of legal officers which reviewed the conviction of Abdelbaset Ali Mohmed Al Megrahi whose case the Commission referred to the High Court in June 2007. During the course of that review Mr Johnston acquired an LLM in human rights law from the University of Strathclyde.

Mr Johnston is a regular contributor to the Journal of the Law Society of Scotland and is a member of the International Pro-Bono Lawyers Group set up by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office to advise UK citizens facing criminal charges abroad.

Michael Walker BSc (Hons) LLB Dip L.P – Senior Legal Officer

After graduating with a degree in immunology, Mr Walker returned to the University of Glasgow to study law. He worked for several years in private practice, in the areas of criminal law and civil litigation, before joining the Commission in 2001.

He was part of the team of legal officers which reviewed the conviction of Abdelbaset Ali Mohmed Al Megrahi, whose case the Commission referred to the High Court in June 2007. Michael is in the process of completing a Masters degree in human rights law from the University of Strathclyde.