My Lord/Lady
The government have just passed through parliament the Justice and Security bill, to allow trial by secret courts and during which the defence barrister will be appointed by the government.
You have been brought up in a Kingdom in which secret courts are an anathema to our way of life and our system of justice, which must not only be done but must be seen to be done.
The common law demands we are tried fairly and in full view of our peers, this is the long established custom and practice of English Kings, of this Kingdom and its people. English Common Law demands no less than we be tried by a jury of our peers, in full public view.
Every time a King has attempted to deviate from this they have been deposed, all our great laws Magna Carta, Habeas Corpus, and the Bill of Rights, can and do trace their origins back to the legal codes of King Alfred the Great. The star chamber was tried and disposed of because it impinged on our basic English freedom to a fair trial.
Amongst the many responsibilities our judges have is the responsibility to ensure the rights and freedoms of Her Majesty's subjects are upheld in line with the requirements of English Common Law. You do this by insisting on the rule of law as we in England have defined it, justice should and must be fair and impartial. It must never be allowed to degenerate into a tool used by government to oppress Her Majesty's subjects. Those who have the Honour and it is a very real honour to work in the field of law and justice, have an absolute duty to resist bad law and what has just passed through parliament is bad law with bells on which cries out this must be resisted. You will recall the ruling by Chief Justice Beresford of the Common pleas who ruled "there is no such thing as a bad law, for if it is bad it is not law" The justice and security Bill 2013 is bad law and is therefore not law.
You as Her Majesty's judges are our last line of defence before the bullet is chambered, and if this is allowed to pass it will be chambered. I would ask that if you are asked to sit on the Bench for one of these secret trials, you refuse to sit. If our judges will not preside over these trials then secret trials cannot happen and a bad law will be consigned to the pages of history. There is never an occasion when secret trials are justified in England. The Official Secrets Acts must never be used to cover the crimes of government ministers whose will must never be allowed to over ride the safety of 65,000,000 of Her Majesty's subjects. You are not required to protect bad government, you are required to defend our English rights and freedoms, by supporting Her Majesty in keeping her Coronation Oath to her subjects. In line with your oath of allegiance to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II.
Respectfully submitted
Albert Burgess
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