Sexual assault, incest and stalking could be among the crimes tried by a new type of court that doesn’t involve a jury, under recommendations in a report published today.
Sir Brian Leveson’s Independent Review of the Criminal Courts proposes a massive shake-up of the justice system in England and Wales to try and stem the enormous backlog of trials.
The first part of his review, which sets out changes which would need to be made by Parliament, was released this morning.
It suggests the use of cautions and unpaid work – known as Out of Court Resolutions – should be expanded to divert cases away from court.
Perhaps the most dramatic suggestion made in the review is the introduction of a new court called the Crown Court Bench Division (CCBD), which would be made up of two magistrates and a judge without a jury.
If a person is accused of what’s called an ‘either way’ offence, they can choose if they would prefer for it to be dealt with by the magistrates’ court or by the Crown Court.
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Currently, choosing Crown Court means the defendant will get a trial by jury – but under the new recommendations, a judge would decide whether the trial should instead be overseen by the CCBD.
Sir Brian recommends there would be a presumption of a CCBD trial for any ‘either way’ offence where the prospective sentence is three years or less.
The logic is that a CCBD trial would be much less labour-intensive and help cut the backlog, which has reached a record high of 76,957 at the end of March.
Included in Sir Brian’s indicative list of offences to be allocated to the CCBD are:
- Exposure and voyeurism
- Theft from shops
- Stalking
- Possession of indecent photograph of a child
- Animal cruelty
- Incest with a relative aged 18 or over
- Assault occasioning actual bodily harm
- Causing death by careless or inconsiderate driving
- Sexual assault on a female, male or child
Meanwhile, defendants facing charges where the maximum sentence is two years in prison would have their right to a jury trial removed.
Sir Brian, a former senior judge, said he did not ‘rejoice’ in the recommendations but that he believed they were ‘absolutely essential if we are to prevent our system from collapse’.
He told reporters: ‘It is well recognised that justice delayed is justice denied, but the record and rising court backlog means victims, witnesses and defendants are waiting months, sometimes years, for cases to come to trial – unable to move on with their lives.
‘This situation is simply unacceptable’
Baroness Newlove, the Victims’ Commissioner for England and Wales, said she welcomes the review’s proposals ‘though not without reservation’, arguing many victims may see them as ‘justice diluted’.
She added: ‘The truth is nothing short of bold reform will fix a system this badly broken. No amount of efficiency tweaks can deliver what is needed. The system has been hollowed out for too long.
‘What the Leveson Review proposes is radical – but it is also necessary. There is no credible alternative, but even this may fall short of what’s truly needed.’
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