Family in six-year wait for justice call for register of accused sexual offenders

dailyrecord.co.uk:

The family of a sexual abuse victim who waited six years for her case to come to court have called for a national register of people awaiting trial for sexual offences.It follows the case of gardener John Tervet who was handed 30 months for abusing a schoolgirl.Army veteran Tervet, from Kirriemuir, Angus, who was sentenced earlier this month, was on bail for the duration of the six years the case took to come to court.The victim, who cannot be identified for legal reasons, was 12 when the abuse happened but by the time she was called to give evidence in court she had turned 19, and is now a college student.Her family, who have launched a campaign, say a register would enable police, employers, youth organisations, and bodies dealing with child safety to make checks on individuals who could potentially pose a risk during the court process.They also believe that new partners or spouses should be able to request the same information.

The family have set up an online petition, through the UK parliament, which has already attracted more than 200 signatures.They want the matter to be debated by MPs for the Government to make changes to protect potential victims.A spokesperson for the family said: “Sexual offence cases can take years to go to trial, with defendants often released on bail with no,or limited conditions.“A public register of people awaiting trial for sexual offences would mean that individuals or organisations could find out if someone was suspected of a sexual offence, and potentially avoid becoming victims themselves.“We do not think it was right that someone like Tervet was able to walk the streets for so long without any monitoring, supervision or people knowing of the charges he was facing.