Ensuring victims of crime get “their day in court” through the abolition of corroboration is as important as avoiding miscarriages of justice, Alex Salmond has told MSPs.
The First Minister made reference to the case of Lee Cyrus, who was the prime suspect for the rape of a young woman and the separate assault of a 68-year-old in her Perth home in October 2012, as he defended the proposals.
Scotland’s Solicitor General said a “lack of corroboration” meant there was insufficient evidence to prosecute the violent criminal offences after charges were brought against Cyrus but dropped.
Mr Salmond said: “Let us get to the substance of the issue. I again bring the chamber’s attention to the Lee Cyrus case.
“Some members demanded to know why that individual could not be prosecuted for suspected crimes in Scotland. The Crown Office had already said that was because of the general rule of corroboration.
“That is the difficulty. It means that cases do not get to court. That difficulty potentially denies justice to many people in Scotland, particularly women who have been the victims of sex crimes.
“Being denied justice, as people are being at the moment, is as important an issue as the possible miscarriage of justice.”
He was speaking at First Minister’s Questions after Liberal Democrat leader Willie Rennie branded the way Justice Secretary Kenny MacAskill has handled attempts to abolish the centuries old legal safeguard “crackers”.
Corroboration means two pieces of evidence are required to seal a conviction, such as an eye witness and DNA sample.
Mr MacAskill asked MSPs to approve a Bill that would spell the end of corroboration but pledged the changes would be put on ice until a review could persuade members of Holyrood’s Justice Committee that new legal safeguards to protect the rights of the accused are in place.
Mr Rennie said: “Can the First Minister think of another occasion on which the Government has said: ‘Pass this law and we will decide what to do later’? It is safe to vote for this because we will fix it afterwards?’
Mr Salmond added: “To say that many people are concerned about safeguards and the security of the change and, therefore, that there could be a study of it to give people certainty seems to me a genuine attempt to bring everyone together.
“Perhaps Willie Rennie would get back to the first bit of his question and accept that the Cabinet Secretary for Justice was doing his best while putting forward the importance of not having the prosecution authorities of Scotland and, therefore, the public of Scotland not getting justice because of that general rule.”