International Perspectives on Correcting Wrongful Convictions: The Scottish Criminal Cases Review Commission

Part I of this Article traces the history of the Scottish Criminal Cases Review Commission (SCCRC) and outlines the procedures employed by the SCCRC after an application is received, with particular attention to its extensive investigatory procedures. It also describes and analyzes the standards for referral of an application to the Scottish court. Part II briefly sets forth the statistics concerning applications, referrals, and judicial decisions. Part III includes an analysis of the SCCRC’s work by looking at the cases that have been referred and decided by the court. Those cases are divided into several categories: fresh evidence referrals, referrals based on a newly raised legal issue, and historic cases. It also includes a discussion of two sui generis, but very important decisions, and a consideration of how the SCCRC and the court deal with cases that do not involve any new factual or legal claims. Part IV reflects on and attempts to draw some conclusions about the SCCRC’s role in the correction of wrongful convictions