|
Denis Lemon
''Whitehouse v Lemon'' is a 1976 court case involving the blasphemy law in the United Kingdom. It was the last successful blasphemy trial in the UK. "The Love That Dares to Speak Its Name" "The Love That Dares to Speak Its Name" is a poem by James Kirkup. It is written from the viewpoint of a Roman centurion who describes having sex with Jesus after his crucifixion, and also says that Jesus had had sex with other men including disciples, guards, and Pontius Pilate. The poem itself was considered of low artistic value, both by critics and the author himself. In 1976 the poem was published in '' Gay News'', with an accompanying illustration. Prosecution In early November 1976, Mary Whitehouse obtained a copy of the poem and announced her intention to bring a private prosecution against the magazine. Leave to bring this prosecution was granted on 9 December 1976. The charges named Gay News Ltd and Denis Lemon as the publishers. A charge against Moore Harness Ltd for distribut ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Blasphemy Law In The United Kingdom
Laws prohibiting blasphemy and blasphemous libel in the United Kingdom date back to the medieval times as common law and in some special cases as enacted legislation. The common law offences of blasphemy and blasphemous libel were formally abolished in England and Wales in 2008 and Scotland in 2024. Equivalent laws remain in Northern Ireland. Historically, blasphemy laws in England and Wales protected only Christianity, particularly the established Church of England, with prosecutions targeting those who denied Christian doctrine or mocked religious beliefs. The last person executed for blasphemy in Britain was Thomas Aikenhead, a 20-year-old Scottish student hanged in Edinburgh in 1697, while the last person imprisoned for blasphemy was John William Gott in 1921. The laws remained largely dormant until the landmark 1977 case ''Whitehouse v Lemon'' demonstrated they were still enforceable. The 1985 Law Commission (England and Wales), Law Commission recommended abolition of the offe ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mens Rea
In criminal law, (; Law Latin for "guilty mind") is the mental state of a defendant who is accused of committing a crime. In common law jurisdictions, most crimes require proof both of ''mens rea'' and '' actus reus'' ("guilty act") before the defendant can be found guilty. Introduction The standard common law test of criminal liability is expressed in the Latin phrase ,1 Subst. Crim. L. § 5.1(a) (3d ed.) i.e. "the act is not culpable unless the mind is guilty". As a general rule, someone who acted without mental fault is not liable in criminal law.". . . a person is not guilty of an offense unless he acted purposely, knowingly, recklessly or negligently, as the law may require, with respect to each material element of the offense." Model Penal Code § 2.02(1) Exceptions are known as strict liability crimes.21 Am. Jur. 2d Criminal Law § 127 Moreover, when a person intends a harm, but as a result of bad aim or other cause the intent is transferred from an intended victi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
John William Gott
John William Gott (1866 – 4 November 1922) was a British socialist and the last person in Britain to be sent to prison for blasphemy. His was also the last public prosecution for blasphemy. Later prosecutions were purely private. Religious statements A trouser salesman from Bradford, he led the Freethought Socialist League, working with Thomas Stewart and Ernest Pack. Gott believed that Christian influence was undermining attempts to achieve socialism. Gott and his supporters promoted virulent and public attacks on Christianity. He boasted that his organisation was "responsible for more outdoor lectures on Secularism and Rationalism than all other Societies combined." This was not always easy, as Gott frequently had to solicit funds to continue the lectures. Initial imprisonment Gott came to the attention of the Home Office in 1902 with the ''Truth Seeker'' when local Manchester residents started to agitate against its circulation.Edward Royle, ''Radicals, Secularists, and ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Trafalgar Square
Trafalgar Square ( ) is a public square in the City of Westminster in Central London. It was established in the early-19th century around the area formerly known as Charing Cross. Its name commemorates the Battle of Trafalgar, the Royal Navy, British naval victory in the Napoleonic Wars over First French Empire, France and History of Spain (1700-1808), Spain that took place on 21 October 1805 off the coast of Cape Trafalgar. The site around Trafalgar Square has been a significant landmark since the 1200s. For centuries, distances measured from Charing Cross have served as location markers. The site of the present square formerly contained the elaborately designed, enclosed courtyard, Royal Mews, King's Mews. After King George IV moved the mews to Buckingham Palace, the area was redeveloped by John Nash (architect), John Nash, but progress was slow after his death, and the square did not open until 1844. The Nelson's Column at its centre is guarded by four lion statues. Severa ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
St Martin-in-the-Fields
St Martin-in-the-Fields is a Church of England parish church at the north-east corner of Trafalgar Square in the City of Westminster, London. Dedicated to Saint Martin of Tours, there has been a church on the site since at least the medieval period. This location, at that time, was farmlands and fields beyond the London wall. It became a principal Church of England parish church, parish church west of the old City in the early modern period as Westminster's population grew. When its medieval and Jacobean structure was found to be near failure, the present building was constructed in an influential Neoclassical architecture, neoclassical design by James Gibbs in 1722–1726. The church is one of the visual anchors adding to the open-urban space around Trafalgar Square. History Roman era Excavations at the site in 2006 uncovered a group of burials dating from c A.D. 350, including a sarcophagus burial dating from c. A.D. 410. The site is outside the city limits of Roman London (a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hyperlink
In computing, a hyperlink, or simply a link, is a digital reference providing direct access to Data (computing), data by a user (computing), user's point and click, clicking or touchscreen, tapping. A hyperlink points to a whole document or to a specific element within a document. Hypertext is text with hyperlinks. The text that is linked from is known as anchor text. A software system that is used for viewing and creating hypertext is a ''hypertext system'', and to create a hyperlink is ''to hyperlink'' (or simply ''to link''). A user following hyperlinks is said to ''navigate'' or ''browse'' the hypertext. The document containing a hyperlink is known as its source document. For example, in content from Wikipedia or Google Search, many words and terms in the text are hyperlinked to definitions of those terms. Hyperlinks are often used to implement reference mechanism (engineering), mechanisms such as tables of contents, footnotes, bibliographies, index (publishing), indexes, a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lesbian And Gay Christian Movement
OneBodyOneFaith, formerly the Lesbian and Gay Christian Movement (LGCM), describes itself as "UK-based international Charity which challenges homophobia and transphobia, especially within the Church and faith based organisations". History The Gay Christian Movement was founded in April 1976. (less than 10 years after homosexuality was decriminalised in England – but 4 years before similar changes in Scotland) at a public meeting at the Sir John Cass School in the City of London. In 1977, local chapters were organised, followed in 1978 by the Women's Group, the Evangelical Fellowship in 1979 and Young Lesbian and Gay Christians in 2000. The name was changed to the Lesbian and Gay Christian Movement in 1987. The first General Secretary of the Movement was Jim Cotter, followed by Richard Kirker. The Movement was based initially in the tower of St Botolph's Church, Aldgate; however, in 1989, after a legal challenge by the Archdeacon of London, the Church Council was compelled to ev ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Criminal Justice And Immigration Act 2008
The Criminal Justice and Immigration Act 2008 (c. 4) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom which makes significant changes in many areas of the criminal justice system in England and Wales and, to a lesser extent, in Scotland and Northern Ireland. In particular, it changes the law relating to custodial sentences and the early release of prisoners to reduce prison overcrowding, which reached crisis levels in 2008. It also reduces the right of prison officers to take industrial action, and changed the law on the deportation of foreign criminals. It received royal assent on 8 May 2008, but most of its provisions came into force on various later dates. Many sections came into force on 14 July 2008. Specific provisions Sentencing Non-custodial sentences Section 1 of the Act provides a comprehensive list of new community orders, called ''youth rehabilitation orders,'' which can be imposed on offenders aged under 18. They can only be imposed if the offence is imprisonabl ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Monty Python
Monty Python, also known as the Pythons, were a British comedy troupe formed in 1969 consisting of Graham Chapman, John Cleese, Terry Gilliam, Eric Idle, Terry Jones and Michael Palin. The group came to prominence for the sketch comedy series '' Monty Python's Flying Circus'', which aired on the BBC from 1969 to 1974. Their work then developed into a larger collection that included live shows, films, albums, books, and musicals; their influence on comedy has been compared to the Beatles' influence on music. (The live version of the Web page does not contain the quoted line, but the archived version does.) Their sketch show has been called "an important moment in the evolution of television comedy". ''Monty Python's Flying Circus'' was loosely structured as a sketch show, but its innovative stream-of-consciousness approach and Gilliam's animation skills pushed the boundaries of what was acceptable in style and content. A self-contained comedy unit, the Pythons had creative ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
European Court Of Human Rights
The European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR), also known as the Strasbourg Court, is an international court of the Council of Europe which interprets the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR). The court hears applications alleging that a contracting state has breached one or more of the human rights enumerated in the convention or its optional protocols to which a member state is a party. The court is based in Strasbourg, France. The court was established in 1959 and decided its first case in 1960 in ''Lawless v. Ireland''. An application can be lodged by an individual, a group of individuals, or one or more of the other contracting states. Aside from judgments, the court can also issue advisory opinions. The convention was adopted within the context of the Council of Europe, and all of its member states of the Council of Europe, 46 member states are contracting parties to the convention. The court's primary means of judicial interpretation is the living instrument doctrine, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
European Commission Of Human Rights
The European Commission of Human Rights was a special body of the Council of Europe. From 1954 to the 1998 entry into force of European Convention on Human Rights#Protocol 11, Protocol 11 to the European Convention on Human Rights, individuals did not have direct access to the European Court of Human Rights; they had to apply to the commission, which if it found the case to be well-founded would launch a case in the Court on the individual's behalf. Protocol 11 which came into force in 1998 abolished the commission, enlarged the Court, and allowed individuals to take cases directly to it. Role and formation Commission members were elected by the Committee of Ministers and would hold office for six years (during which time they were to act independently, without allegiance to any state). Their role was to consider if a petition was admissible to the Court. If so, the Commission would examine the petition to determine the facts of the case and look for parties that could help sett ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Strict Liability
In criminal and civil law, strict liability is a standard of liability under which a person is legally responsible for the consequences flowing from an activity even in the absence of fault or criminal intent on the part of the defendant. Under the strict liability law, if the defendant possesses anything that is inherently dangerous, as specified under the "ultrahazardous" definition, the defendant is then strictly liable for any damages caused by such possession, no matter how carefully the defendant is safeguarding them. In the field of torts, prominent examples of strict liability may include product liability, abnormally dangerous activities (e.g., blasting), intrusion onto another's land by livestock, and ownership of wild animals. Other than activities specified above (like ownership of wild animals, etc), US courts have historically considered the following activities as "ultrahazardous": # storing flammable liquids in quantity in an urban area # pile driving # bl ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
