Law granting anonymity to sex offence suspects declared invalid

A Northern Ireland law granting anonymity to people suspected of sexual offences until they are charged is not compatible with human rights or press freedom, a judge has said.

The law, which came into effect in Northern Ireland in 2023, granted anonymity for life, and for 25 years after death, to suspects who hadn’t been charged.

Media organisations joined forces in an attempt to have sections of the Justice (Sexual Offences and Trafficking Victims) Act (Northern Ireland) 2022 declared legally invalid.

Mr Justice Humphreys told Belfast High Court that a fair balance between competing rights had not been struck by the act.

It had been argued during the judicial review that victims of sexual assault could be jailed if they publicly named their suspected abusers.

The court had also heard that the law meant not only that victims could be criminalised but that suspects could not publicly deny allegations.