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Criminal Courts & Lay People - Coggle Diagram
Criminal Courts & Lay People
Criminal Court Procedure
Triable-Either-Way Offences
Pre-trial
The D is charged and given a summons to attend court
There is a
plea before venue
Guilty Plea = straight to sentencing (Mags will decide if they have appropriate powers of sentencing, if not send case to Crown Court)
Not Guilty Plea:
Directions (mode of trial) Hearing
D has the right to choose trial by jury in the Crown
Decisions on Legal Aid/Bail
Mags decide if they have adequate powers of sentencing
At Trial
Magistrates' Court = Same as Summary
Crown Court = Same as Indictable
Appeals
Magistrates' Court = Same as Summary
Crown Court = Same as Indictable
Indictable Offences
At trial
Jury sworn in
Prosecution sets out their case - defence cross-examines
Second Plea
Defence sets out their case - prosecution cross-examines
Jury deliberates and gives their verdict
NG: D is free to go/G: Judge decides appropriate sentence
Appeals
Defence
Crown Court
Court of Appeal
Supreme Court
Prosecution
Against Acquittal
Jury Nobbling (CPIA 1996)/New Evidence (CJA 2003)
Against Sentence
Attorney General can apply to CoA if sentence too lenient
Point of Law
Judge has stopped case against D based on faulty point of law
Judge has misdescribed a point of law to the jury
Pre-trial
Plea + Case Management Hearing
Plea
Guilty: Pre-sentence reports + sentencing date set
Not Guilty: Trial Date Set
Criminal Procedure & Investigations Act 1996
: both sides must disclose evidence to eachother
Administrative Hearing (MC)
Bail (Act 1976)
unconditional/conditional
Non-Fatal Offences = presumption of bail
Legal Aid
Plea: Mags note it down and formally send it to the Crown Court
Summary Offences
At Trial
The prosecution sets out their case - the defence cross examines witnesses
Defence sets out their case - prosecution cross-examines their witnesses
The D gives a second plea
Magistrates decide on the facts and the law
They decide the verdict and the sentence with the help of a court clerk
Appeals
Defence: Appeal to the Crown court where case will be heard by a judge and 2 magistrates
Prosecution: Case stated appeal to the QBD of the High Court (only where the magistrates have made an error on a point of law)
Final Appeal: To Supreme Court - there must be leave to appeal
Pre-trial
Decision as to whether there is enough evidence to charge the D
D is summoned to a Magistrates' Court to give an initial plea
Guilty Plea = Straight to sentencing
Not Guilty Plea = Administrative Hearing
Decisions Bail/Legal Aid/Trial Date
Sentencing
Powers of the courts
Crown Court
Custodial
: Unlimited up to max. sentence for particular offence
Fines
: Unlimited
Other
: Community Order/Conditional+Absolute Discharge
Magistrates' Court
Fines
: Up to £5000
Other
: Community order/Discharge/Driving disqualification
Custodial
: Up to 6 months for one offence/12 months for 2 offences
Sentences Available to Adults
Fixed-Term
Suspended Sentence
Discretionary Life
Community order
Mandatory Life (15 years)
Conditional Discharge
Absolute Discharge
Fine
Aims
Denunciation
: Expressing society's disapproval of a certain crime
Deterrence
: Giving a harsh sentence in order to prevent potential criminals from committing the same crime
Rehabilitation
: An attempt to reform the way the D behaves so that after their sentence they can become good citizens
Reparation
: paying back society for the damage the D has done to society
Retribution
: the idea that the sentence should reflect the crime. D receives what they deserve.
Protection of the Public
: Especially dangerous Ds must be locked up so they can be prevented from committing more crime
Aggravating/Mitigating Factors
Mitigating
Mental disability
Clear remorse
Co-operating with police
No previous convictions
Guilty plea
Aggravating
Public Office holder
Gang member
Pre-meditation
Vulberable victim
Previous Convictions
Racially Aggravated
Offending whilst on bail
Juries
Selection
Qualifications: Aged 18-70/On the electoral register/lived in the UK for 5 years
Disqualifications
Permanent
Served a custodial sentence of over 5 years
Mental/physical incapacity
Temporary
Disqualified for 10 years after release from a custodial sentence of under 5 years
Disqualified whilst on bail
Excusals
Complete excusals extremely rare
Juror can apply to delay their service if they have a good reason (holiday payed for/essential work meeting etc)
Role
Take an oath before the trial starts to "try the case according to the evidence"
Hear both the prosecution and defence cases
Delliberate in secrecy decide the verdict
Unanimous verdict preferable but the judge can accept a majority of 11:1 or 10:2 after a minimum of 2 hours delliberation
Jury foreman announces the verdict, then judge releases prisoner/gives sentencing
Evaluation
Jury Equity
Juries can decide ideas on the basis of fairness as they are not confined to legal procedure and regulations (R v Ponting 1984)
Flexibility afforded to juries can lead to unfair and perverse decisions (R v Kronlid & Others 1996)
Jury Secrecy
Juries are able to make their decision in secret, meaning individuals are free from external pressure and can make potentially unpopular/embarrassing decisions (AG v Seckerson 2009 - finality of verdict vital)
Jury secrecy means that there is no way of knowing if the jury came to their decision for legitimate/justifiable reasons (R v Mirza 2004 - defendant convicted for use of interpreter)
Jury Impartiality
Juries of 12 people deliver much more impartial results than a single judge resulting from necessity for debate and compromise (right to challenge jury to the array)
Jury impartiality cannot be guaranteed as racial bias has not been entirely rooted out (Sander v UK 2000)
Magistrates
Selection/Appointment
Qualifications
Aged 18-65
Lives in local area
Prepared to sit at least 26 half days a year
Appointment
1st interview: the six key qualities are assessed (good character/sound judgement/social awareness/good understanding & communication/maturity & sound temperament/commitment and reliability
2nd interview: case studies to assess potential skills
Training
Initial Training
: candidates learn about the workings and composition of the bench
Core Training
: candidates learn core skills required for magistrates' duties
Activities
: Candidates observe other magistrates sitting in court, take notes and get a feel for the courtroom
Mentoring
: Candidates sit as a 'winger' in cases (they sit beside a highly experienced magistrate to guide them)
Appraisal
: The four key competencies (MNTI 2004) are assessed after 2 years (Working as a team member/ managing yourself/making judicial decisions/managing judicial decisions
Roles
Summary offences
: hear all of them
Triable either way cases
: Hear plea before venue and mode of trial hearings (bail/legal aid)
Indictable offences
: administrative hearing (hear plea/bail/legal aid)
Extra training
: to sit in the youth court or the family court
Appeals
: from the MC, they sit in CC with one other magistrate and a circuit judge
Powers (see sentencing diagram to the right)
Removal
Retirement at 70
s11 Courts Act 2003
failure to meet competencies (MNTI 2004)
Neglecting duties
Incapacity