The Criminal Court Process in England and Wales

The criminal court process in England and Wales starts with an indictment. An indictment is the legal term for the criminal charges that form the basis of the trial. The prosecution of the indictment is generally carried out the Crown Prosecution Service or CPS. The CPS are the legal arm of the state and they decide if the information and evidence provided by the police is solid enough for criminal charges to be brought against the defendant. This initial process is termed the committal. Committal proceedings are dealt with by a magistrate. The magistrate will access the evidence, if the case is serious enough it will then be passed to the crown court. If a case reaches the Crown Court it will be seen in front of a judge and jury. The judge supervises the criminal trial by attempting to ensure clarity and fairness of the proceedings. The judge must also decides on legal issues (such as whether a piece of evidence is admissible - should be put before the jury) and also instruct the jury as to the correct view of the law relevant to the case. It is the role of the jury to decide if the defendant is either guilty or innocent. The jury will access the evidence before them and come to a verdict. The verdict can either be a unanimous verdict where all the jurors are united in their view or a majority verdict where the majority of the jury have agreed on an outcome. In criminal cases, the burden of proof resides with the prosecution. The prosecution was must prove guilt of the defendant. The defendant does not have to prove their innocence. The standard of proof required in law is that the case must be proved beyond reasonable doubt. If a defendant is found guilty then it is the judge that will pass sentence and also set the length of time the defendant will serve for their crime. The tariff is not set by the jury. There is a course to appeal after the first trial but there needs to be compelling evidence for an appeal to be heard. Tony Heywood©

Source: http://www.ArticlePros.com/author.php?Antony Heywood

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