Newspaper campaigns to affect policy making

Question 1

What is Sarah’s Law?

Answer 1

a successful campaign that allows parents and carers and others to ask the police if a convicted sex offender has contact with a specific child

Question 2

What was the background of Sarah’s Law?

Answer 2

Abduction and murder of 8 year old Sarah Payne by Roy Whiting

Question 3

How did the newspaper ‘News of the World’ help the campaign?

Answer 3

It named and shamed 50 paedophiles

Question 4

How did the campaign succeed?

Answer 4

persuaded the government to introduce the Child Sex Offender Disclosure Scheme throughout England and Wales

Question 5

What is the year and a day rule?

Answer 5

if victims of assault live for a year and a day, their attackers could not be tried for manslaughter or murder

Question 6

What is an example of the year and a day rule?

Answer 6

Michael Gibson was assaulted by David Clark. Michael died after being in a coma for 22 months. Clark could only be charged for grievous bodily harm and was jailed for two years, he was free before Michael died

Question 7

What was Northern Echo’s role with the ‘Justice for Michael’ campaign?

Answer 7

urged its readers to a sign a petition demanding that the year and a day rule be scrapped

Question 8

How did this campaign succeed?

Answer 8

following the delivery Northern Echo’s petition to the Law Commission, a bill was passed by Parliament to become the 1996 Reform Act