Legal news from the Scottish press

New-build homes ‘worst hit by the housing crunch’ - The Herald
Ask any seasoned estate agent about the downward-pointing graphs illustrating most stories about house prices and they will tell you they don't tell the whole story. Some sections of the housing market have been particularly badly hit, while other houses are still in demand.

Man escapes jail sentence after mother allowed sex with girl, 14 - The Scotsman
A MOTHER who allowed her 14-year-old daughter to sleep with a man eight years her senior was condemned by a sheriff yesterday.
The woman was accused of a "serious dereliction of parental responsibility" for letting the schoolgirl have sex with Daniel Balfour.

Factor market ‘not working well’ … but it can still police itself - The Herald
Scotland's property management industry will be allowed to police itself even though "the market is not working well for consumers", the Office of Fair Trading has recommended. Factors will only face the threat of a statutory scheme which could see them barred from operating if self-regulation fails, the OFT added.

Fit-Up Coppers Quit Before They're Fired  - Daily Record
TWO disgraced cops who lied to fit-up a law student and his pal have quit before they could be fired. Community officers Neil Jones, 35, and Andrew MacRobert, 28, were found guilty of making up breach of the peace charges against William Reid and Callum McCaig.

Silence Of Jolanta Murder Rap Man - Daily Record
A LITHUANIAN accused of murdering Jolanta Bledaite has chosen to remain silent, it emerged yesterday. Vitas Plytnykas, 41, will not give evidence on his own behalf at the High Court in Edinburgh.

McRae flying licence had expired -  BBC online
Former rally world champion Colin McRae's flying licence was out-of-date when he crashed his helicopter in woodland near Lanark in September 2007. An Air Accidents Investigation Branch (AAIB) report into the tragedy found no cause could be positively determined.