Crown Court procedure

[Charlie1986]

Mods happy for you to move this to the correct forum

Evening all

Need some guidance on the procedures to get my head around something.

We have a lodger soon to be had! who has recently been charged with several offences (10) They been bailed and he’s told us that he’s innocent and his solicitor has provided proof etc.

So some questions

1 - would it be straight to crown court if CPS have been given this proof( he may be trying to justify himself to us)

2. Do cases go straight to crown court in this day and age?

All this happened this evening so trying to get my head around it all and keep calm!

[SteveScooby]

First appearance will always be at Magistrates court. They will decide whether it is something that can be dealt with there or if it is sufficiently serious to go to Crown.

[Charlie1986]

SteveScooby said:

First appearance will always be at Magistrates court. They will decide whether it is something that can be dealt with there or if it is sufficiently serious to go to Crown.

Thanks for clearing this up - he had told my other half as I’m banned from being near him by her that it went to crown court as it’s a cold case

[Sebring440]

Charlie1986 said:

Mods happy for you to move this to the correct forum

Evening all

Need some guidance on the procedures to get my head around something.

We have a lodger soon to be had! who has recently been charged with several offences (10) They been bailed and he’s told us that he’s innocent and his solicitor has provided proof etc.

So some questions

1 - would it be straight to crown court if CPS have been given this proof( he may be trying to justify himself to us)

2. Do cases go straight to crown court in this day and age?

All this happened this evening so trying to get my head around it all and keep calm!

<<<We have a lodger soon to be had!>>>

What does that mean?

If it's a "cold case" why has he recently been charged with several offences?

Why are you banned from being near him? Are you involved with the case? Must make things difficult if he's your lodger.

[105.4]

As Steve has already stated, things go to Mags anyway, merely as procedure.

Anything that is likely to get the defendant a custodial of four years or more will automatically get kicked straight to Crown, (in England, not sure about Scotland).

Just because this has happened, (the case getting kicked over to Crown), doesn’t mean that your lodger is guilty or innocent, it’s just a procedural matter.

Several months down the line, your lodgers case will eventually get a mention in Crown Court, and it may well be the case that the Judge may dismiss the case due to a lack of evidence, or your lodger may enter a guilty plea at that stage, or he may run trial.

Whatever happens, don’t expect things to progress quickly. Expect a minimum of four months to a maximum of 12 months before all of this is settled.

I assume that your lodger is out on bail and from what you’ve written, (or should I say omitted), it doesn’t sound like he’s on Tag / HDC, so whatever the charges are, they don’t sound too serious.

If it was anything too bad, he’d have been remanded into custody straight away.

[105.4]

Charlie1986 said:

Thanks for clearing this up - he had told my other half as I’m banned from being near him by her that it went to crown court as it’s a cold case

Erm…. that’s not correct.

I’m not saying that you are lying btw.

It could be that your Mrs misunderstood what she was being told, or it could be that your lodger is lying.

I’ll put it this way. My spidey senses are tingling.

I think your lodger may want to be finding somewhere else to live.

Does he have any previous? If it’s a cold case, then why has he been given a tug for it? I’m guessing the Police have his prints and DNA already on file?

[Charlie1986]

Sebring440 said:

Charlie1986 said:

Mods happy for you to move this to the correct forum

Evening all

Need some guidance on the procedures to get my head around something.

We have a lodger soon to be had! who has recently been charged with several offences (10) They been bailed and he’s told us that he’s innocent and his solicitor has provided proof etc.

So some questions

1 - would it be straight to crown court if CPS have been given this proof( he may be trying to justify himself to us)

2. Do cases go straight to crown court in this day and age?

All this happened this evening so trying to get my head around it all and keep calm!

<<<We have a lodger soon to be had!>>>

What does that mean?

If it's a "cold case" why has he recently been charged with several offences?

Why are you banned from being near him? Are you involved with the case? Must make things difficult if he's your lodger.

He’s moving out this evening as ive asked him to leave.

I’m not allowed near him due to the offences and my other half knows my views on it. I

As to the recent charges I’ve no idea. He says it’s from 10 years ago but also told us it was assault. Let’s say he’s lost his job as a personal trainer and swim teacher… as the police went to his work

[Charlie1986]

105.4 said:

Charlie1986 said:

Thanks for clearing this up - he had told my other half as I’m banned from being near him by her that it went to crown court as it’s a cold case

Erm…. that’s not correct.

I’m not saying that you are lying btw.

It could be that your Mrs misunderstood what she was being told, or it could be that your lodger is lying.

I’ll put it this way. My spidey senses are tingling.

I think your lodger may want to be finding somewhere else to live.

Does he have any previous? If it’s a cold case, then why has he been given a tug for it? I’m guessing the Police have his prints and DNA already on file?

It’s a what he has told her. And I feel he’s 100% lying to us all

I wish it was my spider senses tingling and not my Jean claud vandame thoughts that are tingling.

It’s bail with conditions or going to a area and contacting the witness

[105.4]

Charlie1986 said:

It’s a what he has told her. And I feel he’s 100% lying to us all

I wish it was my spider senses tingling and not my Jean claud vandame thoughts that are tingling.

It’s bail with conditions or going to a area and contacting the witness

If these alleged offences are what I suspect they are, (and at the moment, they are still just allegations), I am surprised that he isn’t on Tag.

[Charlie1986]

It was surprising to me that he isn’t on tag as well. It seems like it’s only Bail with the conditions as stated above.

I’m all for innocent until proven guilty and it’s why I’m trying to get my head around the Crown court etc. it does make harder I’m a father as I’ve automatically went to protect mode

[BertBert]

I'm curious as to why you are interested in the procedure at court? Your lodger is moving out and for you that'll be the end of it.

[Koyaanisqatsi]

Charlie1986 said:

Thanks for clearing this up - he had told my other half as I’m banned from being near him by her that it went to crown court as it’s a cold case

Don't fully understand this and why you might be 'banned from being near him' apart from your other half pulling you aside and telling you 'don't do anything stupid'.

All cases ('cold' or otherwise, from petty theft to terrorism) will begin at a Magistrates Court. They are kicked up to a Crown Court when it's a serious offence and sentencing power of the magistrates is exhausted. Often, cases of the nature I think involved here can be steered by the defendant's court advocate or solicitor in order to be sentenced by a Crown Court judge, and the sentencing guidelines are right at the maximum of what the magistrates can impose. If the case is kept at the Magistrates level then there is the danger of the magistrates 'panicking' and simply imposing the maximum they possibly can for the offences because they are used to sentencing such offences, whereas if the case is kicked up to the Crown Court it can be sentenced by a Judge experienced in sentencing such offences and a sometimes more favourable outcome can be had for the defender, especially with an experienced barrister doing the bartering with the judge, such as 10 years of conditions instead of life, or 5 years instead of 10 years, restrictions on internet access etc. All that is based on a guilty plea which grants sentencing credit of course. A not guilty plea will trigger a full blown jury trial, and most definitely will not be looked upon favourably by a judge come sentencing (e.g. not pleading guilty early on, causing a victim to go through the upset and stress of a court trial, any other aggravating factors etc.).

We neither want to nor need to know the specifics of the offences and case on here, and I'd strongly advise against giving too much information away on here, but there are plenty of very good law websites online describing how a Crown Court case plays out though, and it would be a good idea to familiarise yourself with it I would suggest.