Scotland is set to lose a large proportion of its CCTV coverage after plans to switch cameras off across the country have been revealed.

In this age of social media, new sentencing guidelines are being drafted to enforce tougher punishments on young people who film instances of knife crime and upload them to online platforms in England &Wales. Within gangs, this has become an increasingly popular method of humiliating victims and asserting dominance - something that the law is attempting to crack down on. This is only one of a number of ‘aggravating factors’ for judges and magistrates to consider when sentencing defendants convicted of possessing a blade or offensive weapon in public, or making threats.

More than 2100 arrests were made during 2015 as part of a clampdown against serious and organised criminal activity. 

The Law Society of Scotland is calling for the age of criminality in Scotland to be upped from eight to 12 to coincide with UN regulations. 

Evidence given by witnesses could be filmed and then shown in court in an to end witnesses changing their story or forgetting details in court according to a new legal report. 

Figures obtained on the use of the Regulation of Investigatory Powers (Scotland) Act (Ripsa) have shown that there has been a decline in the use of surveillance powers in Scotland. 

A widow has secured a £1.5 million settlement following her husband's murder at the hands of her brother in law. 

A Government report has revealed data that suggests there is no obvious link between tough laws on personal possession and levels of illegal drug use.

On the 30^th September 2014 the Scottish Parliament passed the Anti-social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014, which makes it illegal to use threats or coercion to attempt to force someone into marriage. MSP’s passed the Westminster legislation on the issue after it was enacted in England Wales in June. 

A South African Judge determined that Oscar Pistorius was not guilty of premeditated murder, after firing four fatal shots into his bathroom with his girlfriend, Reeva Steenkamp inside. The judge had to decide between “dollus eventualis” (common murder), culpable homicide or acquittal after clearing Pistorius of the premeditated murder charge.

Glasgow Sheriff Court is under strain from the sheer number of domestic abuse cases coming through the courts. The ‘busiest court in Europe’ currently has a backlog of 1300 domestic abuse cases, with victims waiting up to 19 weeks to have their case heard. The Scottish Court Service however, belives this to be an improvement – it was previously 22 weeks.Domestic abuse cases currently represent around 25 percent of all summary cases coming through the court an din order to relieve the mounting number of cases, additional ‘daily trial courts’ will be held by senior prosecutors next month. 

The law which will allow police to disclose details as to whether an individual has a history of violence known as “Clare’s Law’ is to be introduced in Aberdeen and Ayrshire.

Earlier this month a man was sentenced to five months’ imprisonment and a two-year Football Banning Order at the Sheriff Court at Glasgow, after trouble flared at a city bar on Renfield Street where the England v Scotland football match was being televised.

The Scottish Government is consulting on plans to use GPS satellite tracking to track the whereabouts of sex offenders, including those convicted of sex crimes. It launched the plans this week.

A man was fined £350 and had a five year Football Banning Order (FBO) imposed earlier this week for shouting an offensive sectarian remark during a recent Hearts v Celtic fixture. It is the latest in a series of cases in which FBOs have been imposed.

The Scottish Government is planning to end the automatic early release of prisoners who present the most serious potential risks to the public. It made the announcement when publishing details of its latest programme of legislation.