Petition · past parliament · Ministry of Justice
Abolish Section 13 of the Criminal Appeal Act 1995
Closed
3,878 signatures
What the petition asks
Section 13 of the Criminal Appeal Act 1995 requires that the Criminal Cases Review Commission only refer cases if it believes that there is a “real possibility” the conviction will be quashed. This can leave innocent victims languishing in prison unable to overturn their convictions.
The CCRC is not the panacea to the problem of the wrongful conviction of the innocent that was envisaged and hoped for. Section 13 of the Criminal Appeal Act 1995 structures reviews in such a way that it must reject applications of innocent victims of miscarriages of justice if it is not felt that they have the necessary new evidence or argument to satisfy the ‘real possibility’ test. It is wrong, inhumane and unacceptable that innocent victims are unable to overturn their wrongful convictions.
Timeline
| 29 Mar 2023 | Petition opened for signatures |
| 29 Sep 2023 | Closed to new signatures |
Key facts
Signatures
3,878
Status
Closed
Department
Ministry of Justice
Opened
29 Mar 2023
Closed
29 Sep 2023
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Source: the official petition page. Last checked 15 Jul 2026.