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Basic Rights And Anti-Terrorism Legislation, Kevin D. Kent

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

This Note addresses whether Britain's Criminal Justice (Terrorism and Conspiracy) Act (CJTCA), which permits police officer opinion testimony as to whether a terrorist suspect is a member of an illegal terrorist organization and allows adverse inferences to be drawn from that suspect's silence, can be reconciled with the fair trial provisions of the Human Rights Act (HRA). Part II of this Note describes the background of the CJTCA, concentrating on the reasons for its rushed passage and on the evidentiary changes it makes to trials of defendants charged with terrorist offenses. Part II describes the background and mechanics of the …