- published: 15 Dec 2015
- views: 40312
In absentia is Latin for "in the absence". In legal use, it usually means a trial at which the defendant is not physically present. The phrase is not ordinarily a mere observation, but suggests recognition of violation to a defendant's right to be present in court proceedings in a criminal trial.
In common law legal systems, conviction of a person in absentia, that is, in a trial in which he/she is not present to answer the charges, is held to be a violation of natural justice. Specifically, it violates the second principle of natural justice, audi alteram partem. By contrast, in some civil law legal systems, such as Italy, trial in absentia is permitted. Such trials may require the presence of the defendant's lawyer depending on the country.
For more than 100 years, courts in the United States have held that, according to the United States Constitution, a criminal defendant's right to appear in person at their trial, as a matter of due process, is protected under the Fifth, Sixth, and Fourteenth Amendments.
In Absentia is the seventh studio album by British progressive rock band Porcupine Tree, first released on 24 September 2002. The album marked several changes for the band, with it being the first with new drummer Gavin Harrison and the first to move into a more heavy metal and progressive metal direction, contrary to past albums psychedelic and pop rock sounds. Additionally, it was their first release on a major record label, Lava Records. It was very well received critically and commercially, with it often being considered the band's crowning achievement, and selling over triple what any of the band's prior album's had in the past.
In the band's earlier years, while under Delerium Records, the band's music typically possessed more extended and abstract qualities typically associated to psychedelic rock and space rock The band shifted their sound in the late 1990s when signing to Kscope/Snapper Record labels, to a more commercial, radio friendly sounded that entailed shorter compositions and traditional song structures, while retaining progressive rock qualities as well. However, by around 2001, they had again outgrown a smaller record label, and after changing labels again to Lava Records, decided to move in a more progressive metal direction. The band had originally opposed to major record labels, believing that most labels didn't "get" the band, and their emphasis on albums over singles, approach in this era of music. However, they chose Lava because they appeared to support this philosophy, Wilson attributing this due to other bands, namely Tool and Radiohead, achieving success with the same mindset.