End of an era as 300-year-old not proven verdict abolished

SCOTLAND'S unique not proven verdict has been consigned to the history books as major new reforms come into force from today.

- BY BEN BORLAND

The Victims, Witnesses, and Justice Reform (Scotland) Act was passed by MSPs last year, bringing an end to the verdict.

Dating back to the 17th century, it served alongside not guilty as verdicts, which both resulted in an acquittal.

But families in cases where an accused was cleared on a not proven verdict had called for it to be scrapped, arguing that it left them in limbo. Other reforms to come into force today include increasing the majority needed to convict from a simple majority to two-thirds of the jury.