Britain takes emergency action to prevent prisons in northern England from becoming overcrowded

LONDON (AP) — Britain has taken emergency action to prevent prisons from becoming overcrowded as hundreds of people are sentenced for their roles in the civil unrest that gripped the country earlier this month. Under the measures, defendants in northern England will be held in police cells while awaiting early court appearances, and they will be summoned to court only when there are prison spaces available for them. Such measures were temporarily implemented in May by the previous Conservative-led government.