Police sued by paedophile
20th July 2009
A convicted paedophile is suing the police for wrongful arrest, false imprisonment and malicious prosecution. He was arrested for giving false details and failing to register a change of address. However charges were later dropped.
There are a series of Acts that deal with the registration and tracking of sex offenders. The SEX OFFENDERS ACT 1997 sets out the notification requirements for sex offenders. More recently we have the SAFEGUARDING VULNERABLE GROUPS ACT 2006. This Act provides the legislative framework for a new vetting and barring scheme for people who work with children and vulnerable adults.
The purpose of the new scheme is to minimise the risk of harm posed to children and vulnerable adults by those that might seek to harm them through their work (paid or unpaid). It seeks to do this by barring unsuitable individuals not just on the basis of referrals but also at the earliest possible opportunity as part of a centralised vetting process that all those working closely with children and/or vulnerable adults will need to go through.
