MISCARRIAGE OF CRIMINAL JUSTICE: THE APPEAL PROCESS AND POST-CONVICTION REVIEW

Abstract

Concerns about miscarriages of criminal justice are not unfamiliar within the criminal justice system. Cases that involve miscarriages of justice shall persist regardless of amendments made to any legal system. However, in the Malaysian context, official consideration was not sufficiently generated for systemic reform dealing with post-appeal avenues in cases of miscarriage of criminal justice, despite certain weaknesses having been identified. The objective of this article is to analyse the weaknesses in laws pertaining to post-appeal avenues in cases of criminal miscarriage of justice, and provide suggestions for minimising such instances. The research is conducted using doctrinal methodology where legal sources of different countries have been scrutinized. Weaknesses in the Malaysian post-conviction avenues are exhibited in the limited powers of the final appellate court to review its decision, in the review of criminal proceedings, and the granting of royal pardon by the Yang di-Pertuan Agong. The analysis of the response to miscarriages of criminal justice and post-conviction avenues in Malaysia undertaken with the objective that a proper legal mechanism be established, where the victims’ right to prove their innocence and obtain a fair trial is ensured. It is hoped that the suggestions given are viewed with an open mind with due regard for the relevant ethical and procedural aspects.