CPS Wiltshire
Annual Report 2003-2004
Introduction by the Chief Crown Prosecutor
During the business year 2003-04 the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) working both independently, and together with our partners in the Criminal Justice System, has continued to rise to the many challenges presented to us both in terms of consolidating previous achievements and successfully implementing new changes.
This report sets out what has been achieved as we strive to continue to provide a high-quality prosecution service for Wiltshire.
Like any publicly funded organisation, we are required by the Public Service Agreement to deliver value for money. We are very fortunate to have a highly professional and dedicated staff of around 58 people who are all committed to achieving success in every aspect of our work. Without their unstinting efforts we could not succeed.
I, and the community at large owe them a great debt of gratitude for the hard work and long hours that they put in to ensure our success. The biggest development over the past year has been the introduction of the Shadow Charging scheme at the police charging centres in Melksham (for North-West Wiltshire), and Salisbury (for South-East Wiltshire).
The Shadow Charging scheme means that duty CPS prosecutors are available to give police officers advice prior to an accused person being charged.
This will result in improvements in the investigation, case preparation, and prosecution of cases. The scheme is already proving successful, especially in enabling the CPS to ensure that prosecution cases are correctly prepared from the beginning.
Inter-agency working is critical to the success of the Crown Prosecution Service and to the Criminal Justice System in Wiltshire. We are fortunate to have excellent working relationships with the Police, Probation Service, Magistrates and Crown Courts and the Youth Offending Teams, as well as the many agencies and voluntary groups who make such valuable contributions to criminal justice, for example the Witness Service.
Under the auspices of the Wiltshire Local Criminal Justice Board we all continue to work hard on a range of major issues designed to meet our targets in bringing more offences to justice, reducing unnecessary delay in progressing cases through the courts, and to keep improving our service to victims and witnesses.
A major success for the Crown Prosecution Service, working in collaboration with the Magistrates' Court, was the introduction of the new pre-trial review system at the beginning of 2003.
The new procedures have resulted in a large reduction in the numbers of trials, which either crack or become ineffective on the day of the hearing, or which have to be vacated shortly before the trial date. This has brought to an end the practice of double, and even treble listing trials, and has therefore made a substantial contribution towards achieving many of the above-mentioned targets.
Another very important initiative during the last year was the establishment of a formal Service Level Agreement by the Wiltshire Crown Prosecution Service with the Wiltshire Constabulary for the effective prosecution of cases involving domestic violence in line with our national policy for the review and prosecution of such cases.
Domestic violence is a scourge on our society and affects many people both directly and indirectly. Working closely with the police and courts, and with assistance from other groups such as the Witness Service, we are committed to bringing more offenders to justice, and more quickly, thereby providing protection to some of the most vulnerable members of our community.
As part of this commitment, CPS Wiltshire has a dedicated "domestic violence" lawyer whose duties include acting as a point of contact for all agencies, ensuring that our staff are adequately trained, and ensuring that we are following best practice.
In the coming year we intend to build on the success that we have already achieved. A priority for us will be to make more contacts with the community to explain our work and the ways in which the CPS plays a major role in fighting crime. We are already forging links with organisations such as the Racial Equality Councils, the Swindon Homophobic Hate Crime Forum, and the Women's Refuge.
Our aim is to increase mutual understanding, thus enabling us to provide a more effective service to the public as a whole. We also welcome the opportunity to talk about our work to schools and colleges, and are able to take a limited number of students for work experience placements.
I commend this Report to the people of Wiltshire and hope that it provides you with a greater insight and understanding of our work and our commitment to helping make your community a safe and pleasant place in which to live.
Guy Knell
Temporary Chief Crown Prosecutor
About CPS Wiltshire
The local prosecution service covers the geographical county of Wiltshire including the unitary authority of Swindon.
The three Magistrates court centres, dealing with criminal matters in the County are located in Swindon, Chippenham, and Salisbury. Their petty sessional boundaries are drawn along the same lines as the three police divisions. These are Swindon, North West Wiltshire, and South East Wiltshire respectively.
The more serious criminal cases are heard in the Crown Courts located in Swindon and Salisbury. However, the most serious cases are heard at Bristol and Winchester Crown Courts. Sometimes Wiltshire cases are heard in Bournemouth and Portsmouth if this is required for more efficient court timetabling.
The Wiltshire Constabulary Headquarters are situated in Devizes (this is effectively in the middle of the Area) with Divisional Headquarters in Swindon, Melksham and Salisbury. Each division has an operational support unit that forms the basis of a Criminal Justice Unit. CPS prosecutors and Designated Caseworkers attend the police stations regularly to review cases for the Narey courts and to give legal advice to operational police officers. Lawyers also attend Melksham and Salisbury to give pre-charge advice under the existing Shadow Charging Scheme. The Scheme will be rolled out in Swindon during the next business year.
There is one Wiltshire Area CPS Office, which is situated in Chippenham, in the North West of the County. Chippenham has very good communication links especially to London, the West and Wales. It has a main line rail link to London and the West Country, and the M4 motorway is situated just North of the town. However, within the county, links are rather poor from North to South resulting in a two hour round trip by road from the office to service the Salisbury Courts.
The Crown Prosecution Service in Wiltshire employs a dedicated team of staff consisting of lawyers, Designated Caseworkers, Crown Court Caseworkers and a team of administrators. The Area is divided into four departments. There is the Criminal Justice Unit that deals with cases in the Magistrates Court, a Trials Unit, which deals with cases in the Crown Court, a Youth Unit which, deals with all cases involving young defendants under 18 years of age and finally the Area Secretariat, which provides personnel planning, facilities management and finance services to the Area.
The Crown Prosecution Service in Wiltshire has developed its own vision statement to support this goal:
"The purpose of CPS Wiltshire is to provide the local community with a high quality prosecution service, playing a central part in the local Criminal Justice System. We will treat all people fairly, professionally and respectfully."
People
CPS Wiltshire remains committed to the continuing professional development of staff. In October of 2003 an Investors In People (IiP) assessor reported on the Area. the assessor confirmed that the Area continues to meet the high standards required to retain the IiP designation. Some very positive feedback was received from the assessor, and the areas for development which were highlighted formed the basis of an action plan to take those improvements forward.
The Area held a very successful training Day in October of last year. The event included staff of all grades. Several outside speakers attended to give presentations. The topics covered at the event included Narrowing the Justice Gap, Speed Cameras, Disclosure, Drug Squad demonstration, Proceeds of Crime, disability and finally Domestic Violence. The evaluation from this event is being used by the Area Training Team to provide an even better Training Day in July 2004.
CPS Wiltshire is currently under the leadership of T/Chief Crown Prosecutor Guy Knell, and Area Business Manager, Karen Sawitzki. The Area Management Team also includes Trials Unit Head, Linda Cassidy and Criminal Justice unit Team Leader, Kate Brown.
CPS Wiltshire is committed to developing and nurturing the wealth of enthusiasm and ability in its people. During the last year three of our staff attended a Career Compass event in a neighbouring Area.
This is an event which provides an individual with an opportunity to look at their career path in the short, medium and longer term in close detail.
We are providing legal sponsorship to one member of staff. This is an extremely positive approach as it allows us to develop some of our own administrative staff into lawyers.
A further three staff have recently completed the internal CPS Casework Officer Training Scheme (COTS). All three gained distinctions following a period of intensive study.
CPS Wiltshire has developed six of its lawyers into Higher Court Advocates (HCA). This means that they have rights of audience to present cases in the Crown Court. Our HCAs regularly prosecute cases at Swindon and Salisbury Crown Courts.
We are currently training three more of our lawyers to undertake more of this work, which would otherwise be sent out to barristers.
CPS Wiltshire continues to recognise and acknowledge the contributions that the staff across the Area make to a variety of initiatives. The photograph, left, shows caseworker Sue Galley being presented with an award for her hard work and dedication in supporting the administration in relation to the Shadow Charging Scheme.
CJS Partnerships
We work closely with our partners in other agencies of the Criminal Justice System to continue to develop a "joined-up" Criminal Justice System. In Wiltshire we have a well-developed Local Criminal Justice Board, which is chaired by the Chief Constable, Dame Elizabeth Neville.
The heads of each of the agencies also sit on the Board: Norman Jeffrey from the Crown Court, Paul Wilcock from the Magistrates' Court, Diana Fulbrook from the Probation Service, Clive Broom from the Prison Service, Jamie Clynch from the Youth Offending Team and Guy Knell from the CPS.
In December the LCJB provided some proactive media coverage in relation to a Domestic Violence protocol that had been developed by Stacey Turner (Senior Crown Prosecutor) and Inspector Ian Miller (both pictured with the LCJB). The press coverage helped to promote the way in which the CPS and their partners in the CJS in Wiltshire are working hard to improve their service in relation to domestic violence cases.
The Police and CPS Wiltshire have worked closely together to roll out Shadow Charging across the Area. Shadow Charging is the CPS determining the right charge at the start of a case; this also provides an opportunity to shape the case at an early stage. This involves CPS lawyers making decisions about the charge prior to court proceedings being initiated. Kate Brown has worked with Superintendent Kevin Maidment to roll out Shadow Charging across the Area. The Scheme started at Chippenham in May 2003 and at Salisbury in July 2003. It is currently being fully evaluated prior to implementation in Swindon later this year.
Karen Sawitzki chairs the Criminal Justice Information Technology (CJIT) Project for Wiltshire. CJIT will enable CJS practitioners to exchange information securely by e-mail, and gives us a real opportunity to improve communications with our CJS partners. The project has been a prime example of the benefits to be gained in terms of efficiency and value for money from working in close co-operation with our CJS partners.
We have had to address many problems around the compatibility of our respective systems and infrastructure. The project was brought into operation in February 2004. The group will continue to work together to develop further process flows during the next year.
Public confidence
In addition we work to improve public confidence in the service that we provide to the community, and we seek opportunities to raise public awareness of the work that we do and our role in the wider Criminal Justice System.
We demonstrate this, first and foremost, in our everyday work by, for example, taking care to support victims and witnesses at court, writing an explanation to the victims of crime whenever we have had to withdraw proceedings or proceed on an offence less serious than the one originally charged, and ensuring that we give prompt and full replies to enquiries from the public and Members of Parliament.
In addition, we welcome the opportunity to do more on a community level. We attend schools to explain our work and the various career paths available in the CPS.
We take part in careers events to promote the CPS as an employer of choice. For example we have built links with the Warneford School in Highworth where the CPS stand is a regular feature at their annual event. Guy Knell and Karen Sawitzki both exhibited the CPS stall at the STAR (Swindon Town Against Racism) event in March to promote the CPS policy on the prosecution of racially and religiously aggravated offences.
This provided an opportunity to work with others to tackle racism. Karen Sawitzki sits on the Race Hate Forum, Race Equality Focus Group and has recently been asked to sit on the management committee of HARBOUR which supports refugees and asylum seekers in Swindon.
During the last year several members of staff, lawyers, caseworkers and administrators, attended the Wheatsheaf Trust in Southampton, an organisation which provides training in respect of cultural differences. The visits involved attending an Afro Caribbean centre, Hindu Temple, Sikh Temple and discussion around Christianity in modern Society. David Singh-Roath from the Society facilitated the visits. The day proved highly successful in giving CPS staff a much better understanding of different cultures in addition to providing an opportunity for us to tell the Trust about the role of the CPS.
Casework
Every case that we prosecute has an impact on a number of people, in particular the victims and their families, the defendants and their families, and the witnesses.
The following is a short selection of some of the serious cases that we have dealt with in the last year.
Regina v Glyn Razzell
This was a murder case without a body. On 19 March 2002 Linda Razzell disappeared on her way to work and was not seen or heard of thereafter. The police investigation revealed that on the day that Mrs Razzell went missing, her estranged husband, Glyn Razzell, borrowed a friend's car.
A forensic examination of that car led to the discovery of Mrs Razzell's blood in the boot. Glyn Razzell pleaded Not Guilty to murder. In October and November 2003 the trial took place at Bristol Crown Court. Over 70 witnesses gave evidence.
Glyn Razzell was found guilty of the murder of Linda Razzell, and was sentenced to life imprisonment.
Regina v Randle Williams
In April 2002, Randle Williams reported his wife, Natalie Williams as a missing person. Due to the very prompt action, and thorough investigation by the Wiltshire Constabulary, Natalie Williams' body was soon recovered from the River Avon; she had been strangled and then drowned.
The investigation revealed a clear motive, namely marriage breakdown and a large financial gain for Williams should his wife lose her life. The rest of the case was a combination of forensic, surveillance, and circumstantial evidence.
This was carefully pieced together to build the prosecution case. Following a four-week trial at Bristol Crown Court, Randle Williams was convicted of murder and sentenced to life imprisonment.
Regina v Endad-Ur Rahman, Nuno Gorguiera, and Abdul Karim
Between April and June 2003, CPS Wiltshire worked closely with the police in Swindon, giving them advice on a police drugs testpurchase operation.
The operation was highly successful, resulting in convictions for drugs offences against all 16 defendants who were brought to justice.
The above-named were alleged to have operated as a team supplying Class A controlled drugs, such as diamorphine (commonly known as heroin) in the Swindon area. Gorguiera and Karim pleaded Guilty to Conspiracy to Supply Class A Controlled Drugs, and Rahman was found guilty after a full trial at Swindon Crown Court.
They received sentences of imprisonment of six years, six years, and eight years respectively.
Regina v Charles William Ingram
Charles Ingram gained notoriety after being convicted of a criminal offence arising out of his cheating on the television game show Who Wants To Be A Millionaire.
Wiltshire CPS did not handle that case, but had conduct of a further prosecution of Major Ingram for alleged offences of deception against insurance companies.
The defence argued that Major Ingram could not have a fair trial because of all the publicity that he had received at his first trial. We were successful in persuading the trial judge that there could be a fair trial.
Ingram was convicted of one offence of deception, and one of attempted deception perpetrated against the Direct Line Insurance Company.
Victims and Witnesses: Questions and Answers
The CJS can appear complicated and confusing to those who are not used to it. If you are in such a situation and you are bewildered or need help then let us know.
We will help you. Hopefully our selection of some of the most commonly asked questions with the answers will cover a lot of concerns.
Investigating a crime:
- What do the Police mean when they say they are "investigating a crime"?
- Do the CPS advise the Police while they are investigating a crime?
The Police are responsible for carrying out investigations when offences have occurred. They interview victims, witnesses and those suspected of committing offences; seize evidence which they think may be relevant and examine it; and in appropriate cases send material to the Forensic Science Laboratories for scientific examination.
Yes, under the existing Shadow Charging Scheme the CPS now routinely give the police legal advice while an investigation is continuing.
This is a new scheme which will be further developed during the course of the next year.
CPS decisions
- How do the CPS make their decisions?
The approach that CPS is required to take to all cases is set out in the Code for Crown Prosecutors. We have to be satisfied that there is enough evidence to provide a "realistic prospect of conviction". This means whether we consider it is more likely than not the person concerned will be convicted of a criminal offence if he or she is prosecuted.
We have to consider whether the evidence obtained can be used in Court, and whether it is reliable. For instance, are there concerns over the reliability of the confession?
Do explanations put forward by defendants to explain their behaviour appear genuine or made up? Is there uncertainty about the identity of the offender?
Is there information that makes what a witness says in his or her statement doubtful?
If we decide there is a realistic prospect of conviction, then we have to consider whether a Prosecution is in "the public interest".
Prosecutions will usually take place unless public interest factors against a Prosecution "clearly outweigh" those in favour of Prosecution.
Witnessing crime
- If I see an offence do I have to make a statement?
- I am scared that if I let the Police know I saw an offence occurring I will end up having to go to Court and talk in public
You cannot be forced to do so but it is vitally important that people who see crimes take place let the Police know that this has happened and make statements.
The great majority of cases are dealt with without witnesses having to attend Court. Most defendants plead guilty. With many cases that are contested, the evidence of a number of witnesses is accepted by the defence so those witnesses do not have to go to Court. However there remain some cases where the witnesses and victims have to go to Court to give evidence.
If you have to go to Court and give evidence there are lots of ways in which you can be helped. You can attend the court to see the courtroom in advance and there is a Victims and Witnesses walk through which is available via the CPS website.
At Court you will be looked after by the Witness Service Staff and you will meet the CPS Prosecutor or Caseworker.
It is important to remember that any of us can be a victim at any time (victims do not choose to be victims). If you were a victim you would want others who saw what happened to come forward and make statements.
Effect of a crime
- If I have been a victim of crime - can I say what impact it has had on my life?
Yes you can. All victims are able to make a Victim Impact Statement. This gives the victim the opportunity to explain what impact the crime has had for him or her.
The impact of a crime can go far beyond any physical impact on the victim.
Sometimes the full impact of a crime is not realised immediately but is realised later. Victim Impact Statements can be made at any time until an offender is sentenced.
Magistrates' court or Crown Court
- Why do some cases go to the magistrates' court and some go to the Crown Court? What is the difference between the two?
In the magistrates' court the case will be heard by two or three magistrates (who are not legally qualified but are trained and advised by a legally qualified advisor) or a Magistrates' Court Judge. They must decide whether the accused person is guilty or not, and if guilty, the appropriate sentence.
At the Crown Court the case will be heard by a Judge and Jury. The jury are members of the public and they decide whether the accused person is guilty. If they do then the Judge decides on the appropriate sentence.
A variety of laws set out where a case must be tried. The vast majority (over 90 per cent) are dealt with in the magistrates' courts.
The most serious cases such as murder, rape and robbery, have to be dealt with at the Crown Court. There are then a range of offences which can be tried at either the magistrates' court or the Crown Court. These include cases of burglary.
With these cases the magistrates first decide whether they consider they have adequate powers to deal with the case but their decision will depend on the details of the actual offence. The person accused of the offence also has the right to elect to be tried at the Crown Court in these cases.
The Court date
- How will I find out what date and time I have to be in Court? Do I need to tell someone if I can't make a particular date or time?
If you are required to give evidence the Police Criminal Justice unit will contact you to get details of your convenient dates for attending court. Once the date of trial is set they will advise you of the date and court which you are required to attend.
If you realise that some dates will not be convenient you should let the Police know at once so that this can be taken into account when Court dates are set.
Reading your statement
- It has been a long time since I made my statement to the Police - will I be able to see it again before I go to Court?
- Can I show my Witness Statement to anyone else?
When a witness is giving evidence the court wants to hear what they can remember of the incident. This means you are not able to read your statement if you are actually giving evidence. However when preparing for Court you can look at the statement which you made to the Police.
It is important to do this because at the time you made the statement the incident was obviously very fresh in your memory and you may have since forgotten some of the points you made at that stage.
The statement is just for you and should not be shown to, or discussed with, anyone else who is a witness in the case.
It is very important to appreciate that what the Court is after is the individual account of each witness.
If witnesses discuss incidents with other people who are also witnesses then there is a great danger that recollections will be affected by what the other people say about the incident.
Waiting at Court to give evidence
- I am really nervous about attending Court - can you tell me exactly what will happen when I get there? Will I be sitting in the same room as the defendant and witnesses for the defence while I wait to give my evidence?
- Will I have to wait long to give evidence?
You are bound to feel nervous. You are doing something that is quite different to what you would normally be doing and something you are unlikely to have ever done before. Everyone at Court understands that and will want to help you as much as they can.
At all the Courts there are rooms you can wait in which will keep you separate from the defendant and any witnesses called by the defence in the case.
At Court you will also meet members of the Witness Service who will look after you while you are waiting to give evidence. The Witness Service has been operating for some years and everyone who has dealings with them finds that they are an enormous help.
Unfortunately in most cases witnesses have to wait a while at Court before they give evidence. This is because it is impossible to know exactly how long each witness will take to give evidence. However the position is regularly checked and witnesses are kept informed of developments while they are waiting to give evidence.
Occasionally there can be considerable delays and witnesses are then allowed to leave Court and return later in the day or the following day. Everyone concerned with the listing of cases appreciates the distress that hanging around causes to witnesses and everything that can be done to keep waiting to a minimum is done.
Giving evidence
- Giving evidence sounds nerveracking - what does it actually entail? I am scared at the idea of standing up and talking in public.
- Are there any special facilities available for particularly vulnerable witnesses or victims? I am concerned that an elderly neighbour won't attend Court if she knows that she will be on view to the defendant in the Courtroom.
If you want to sit down rather than stand up that's no problem; you can give evidence sitting down.
When you give evidence you will be asked questions by the Prosecutor and the Defence Lawyer.
Your job is to answer the questions truthfully and as fully as possible. You know what you saw or heard. The people in Court were not there. Your job is to give them your account.
If you are confused by a question, ask for it to be re-phrased.
Do not just give the answer you think the person putting the question wants if it is not the truth. Take your time. Ask for a break if you feel you need one.
Try not to panic. It's not surprising to feel scared at the idea of giving evidence. Most people will never have done it before.
After a few questions most people feel calmer and relaxed. some even enjoy it!
There are a number of Special Measures that are available to help certain groups of witnesses.
Firstly, those who are under 17 years of age at the time of the Court Hearing or because of their incapacity, for example if they are suffering from a mental disorder.
Secondly, those who are eligible because of the fear or distress they are likely to suffer in connection with giving evidence in the case.
Most victims of sexual crimes are likely to be eligible for special measures.
The special measures include the use of screens to shield a witness from the defendant; the giving of evidence away from the Courtroom by a live television link; the giving of evidence in private and sexual cases involving intimidation; video recording the witnesses account and then playing the video in Court.
Convicted or acquitted
- When all the evidence has been given in Court, what happens next?
In all trials the people deciding whether the person who is accused of the offence is guilty or not must consider all the different pieces of evidence (whether they come from the Prosecution or the Defence) and then reach a decision.
In order to convict a person of an offence they must be sure that he or she did it. This is much more than just thinking that the person may be guilty or thinking that it is more likely than not that they are guilty.
If they cannot be sure or have any doubts, then the person must be found not guilty. This means that in a number of cases the accused person is not convicted.
This does not mean that the victim or witness will not have been believed, it is simply the fact that the Court is left with a doubt over whether the accused meant that he or she committed a criminal offence, and if that happens it is their duty to decide that the person is not guilty of the charge.
Sentencing
- When a defendant had been found guilty when will he/she be sentenced? Who decides the sentence?
- Can the CPS appeal a sentence?
- I don't think the sentence was hard enough? How does the Court decide what to give?
If the person is convicted the Court may sentence him straight away. In many cases however the case will be adjourned to a later date so that the Probation Service or Youth Offending Team can prepare a pre-sentence report.
The sentence is decided by the magistrates or the Judge dealing with the case. The Prosecution do not say what they think the sentence should be.
No; there is no right for the Prosecution to appeal a sentence. However with many of the offences dealt with in the Crown Court the Attorney General has the power to refer cases to the Court of Appeal if he considers that the sentence was unduly lenient.
The fact that a sentence may be regarded as lenient is not sufficient; it must be unduly lenient. In cases referred to it, the Court of Appeal has the power to increase a sentence if it thinks that it should.
CPS draws the attention of the Attorney General to any cases where we feel the sentence passed may be unduly lenient.
Sentencing is an extremely difficult matter and people have different views about the appropriate sentence with most offences. The maximum sentence that is available for each offence is laid down by Parliament and there are then guidelines issued by the Court of Appeal for certain types of offences. These guidelines take account of views of members of the public.
In sentencing offenders the Courts have a number of issues to take into account. In addition to punishing the offender they will also want to do all they can to avoid the offender committing further offences in the future.
In every case that comes before the Courts the circumstances of the victim; the impact on the victim; the attitude of the offender; the background of the offender; will all be different and need to be considered by the Court when deciding on the correct sentence.
About the CPS
The Crown Prosecution Service is headed by the Director of Public Prosecutions, Ken Macdonald QC. The Director is superintended by the Attorney General who is accountable to Parliament for the Service. The Chief Executive is Richard Foster, who is responsible for human resources, finance, business information systems, criminal justice policy and business development, allowing the Director to concentrate on prosecution and legal issues.
The CPS has 42 Areas across England and Wales, matching police force boundaries (CPS London covers the Metropolitan and City of London forces).
Each Area is headed by a Chief Crown Prosecutor who is responsible for the delivery of a high quality prosecution service to his or her local community.
Each Chief Crown Prosecutor is supported by an Area Business Manager, and their respective roles mirror, at a local level, the division of responsibilities between the DPP and the Chief Executive.
Our Aim
The CPS works in partnership with the police, courts, the Home Office and the Department for Constitutional Affairs and other agencies throughout the criminal justice system to reduce crime and the fear of crime and their social and economic costs; to dispense justice fairly and efficiently and to promote confidence in the rule of law.
The CPS' overall aim, which reflects the Government's priorities for the criminal justice system, is to:
Deliver a high quality prosecution service that brings offenders to justice, helps reduce both crime and the fear of crime and thereby promote public confidence in the rule of law through the consistent, fair and independent review of cases and through their fair, thorough and firm presentation at court.
The Code for Crown Prosecutors
The CPS prosecutes all cases in accordance with the Code for Crown Prosecutors. The Code is of fundamental importance to the core business of the CPS as it provides guidance to prosecutors on the general principles to be applied in all prosecution decisions, and acts as a public statement of policy allowing everyone to see and understand the basis upon which these decisions are made.
People
Overall the CPS has 7,600 staff with more than 95 per cent engaged in local delivery or essential support for frontline services. The CPS continues to take forward initiatives to speed up justice.
These include increasing the number of designated caseworkers - specially trained CPS staff, who are not lawyers, review and present in the magistrates' courts a limited range of cases involving straightforward guilty pleas. We also continue to increase the number of Higher Court Advocates (HCAs). They are CPS lawyers who, having undertaken the Service's internal training, are able to exercise full rights of audience as HCAs, principally in the Crown Court.
Workload
Annually the CPS deals with around 1.45 million cases. This includes around one million prosecutions in magistrates' courts and 80,000 prosecutions in the Crown Court and 65,000 advices to the police.
Resources
The 2002 Spending Review set new budgets for the CPS for the three years from 2003-04 to 2005- 06. The CPS budget for 2002-03 was 453 million, an increase of 61 million from the previous year.
Charging
Lord Justice Auld's Review of the Criminal Courts in October 2001 recommended that the CPS should take over responsibility for the decision to charge in all but minor cases.
Following the evaluation of a number of charging pilot schemes that were introduced in 2002, all CPS Areas were committed to provide a shadow charging scheme in conjunction with local police partners, by December 2003. By the end of 2003, all Areas had met this target and 231 schemes were in place. The Statutory Charging Scheme itself will have staged implementation during 2004.
CPS Direct
In order to provide charging advice to the police, at weekends and between the hours of 5pm and 9am, a remote telephone-based advice scheme called CPS Direct has been developed to enable lawyers to work from their own home to provide an out-of-hours service.
Working in partnership
The CPS is taking a leading and influential role in local Criminal Justice Boards (LCJBs). Of the 42 LCJBs, 60 per cent are chaired by Chief Crown Prosecutors and each Board has produced delivery plans for narrowing the justice gap, ineffective trials and public confidence.
Effective trial management
The CPS is working with the Department for Constitutional Affairs on effective trial management pilots, where victims and witnesses know in reasonable time when cases will be heard and can be confident that arrangements will not be changed. Better case management and court listing arrangements will reduce the number of ineffective trials and, in doing so, reduce unnecessary witness attendance and waiting times at court.
Criminal Justice Units and Trial Units
These are units where police and CPS staff are housed and work together. They help reduce administrative duplication and delay; enable closer liaison and promote better working relationships between the two independent organisations.
By 31 March 2004, 92 collocated Criminal Justice Units were operating in 35 Areas, handling about 55 per cent of CPS business in magistrates' courts. There were 43 Trial Units that included a police presence, operating in 29 Areas, handling about 53 per cent of Crown Court business.
Equality and diversity
The CPS Equality and Diversity Unit (EDU) was set up in October 1999. The Unit's remit is to turn the CPS Equality Statement into a reality.
The aim is to ensure that the CPS does not discriminate in either its employment practice or its prosecutions. All staff take part in diversity training and the EDU holds regular national and regional seminars and conferences on a whole range of diversity issues.
It also runs a "Dignity at Work" campaign to ensure, through raised awareness, that all staff are treated with dignity at work and valued in their difference. As a Service, the CPS has already achieved its 2005 targets for employment of minority ethnic staff.
Electronic communication
The CPS continues to develop new electronic information and media. It has an intranet service which gives staff better access to information, improved internal communications and allows the CPS to manage its information and knowledge better.
The CPS initial case management system (COMPASS), developed and introduced in a PFI partnership with LogicaCMG, was rolled out across the 42 Areas between April and December 2003 on time and within budget.
The CPS' internet website is at http://www.cps.gov.uk and is available in English and Welsh. It provides a considerable amount of information about our business, staff and structures.
Leaflets and publications
The CPS publishes a range of leaflets and publications about its work that are available free of charge to members of the public.
Leaflets currently available include: a description of the work of the CPS (Introduction); the people who work for the Service (People); information about careers with the CPS (Careers); the Code for Crown Prosecutors (the Code) - and an abbreviated version of the Code (Prosecutions); the CPS policy on dealing with Domestic Violence and advice for vulnerable witnesses attending court (Witnesses); and a leaflet on how to make a complaint (Complaints).
Most publications are available in alternative formats and in other languages. For more information, contact:
CPS Communications Branch
50 Ludgate Hill
London EC4M 7E
telephone: 020 7796 8442
e-mail: publicity.branch@cps.gsi.gov.uk
Dealing with complaints
Our comprehensive complaints procedure is set out in a leaflet available from Area offices, CPS Communications Branch and on our website: www.cps.gov.uk/contact/complaints.html
Performance in the Magistrates' Courts
All prosecutions start in the magistrates' courts. These include offences ranging from minor motoring matters to assaults and theft. Usually the more serious cases proceed to the Crown Court.
Caseload
The chart shows as received the number of defendants whose cases the Area received from the police and the number of defendants whose cases were finalised between April 1 2003-March 31 2004 and in the previous year.
Our caseload depends on the number of cases the police send to us. Several factors affect this, such as the level of arrest and the number of people the police caution.
Completed Cases
Case Categories
This shows the different types of work dealt with in the Area. They are:
- Summary - cases which can only be tried in the magistrates' courts.
- Indictable/Either Way - Indictable only offences (such as robbery) must be tried in the Crown Court, but either way offences (such as theft) may be tried in either the magistrates' courts or in the Crown Court.
- Advice - cases in which the police ask for our advice about whether proceedings should be started.
- Other Proceedings - non-criminal matters, such as forfeiture under the Obscene Publications Acts.
Case Results
This shows the disposal of those cases which were heard in the magistrates' court, not including those which were discontinued or committed to the Crown Court.
Performance in the Crown Court
Some cases can only be tried in the Crown Court. Other cases go to the Crown Court either because the defendant chooses to be tried there or because the magistrates decide they are serious enough to need Crown Court trial. If a defendent pleads not guilty, the case will be tried before a judge and jury.
Caseload
The chart shows as received the number of defendants who came before the Crown Court and the number whose case was dealt with there.
Completed Cases
Source of Committals
Case Categories
- Committed for trial - Indictable only and some either way cases are sent from the magistrates' courts for trial to the Crown Court.
- Appeals - Defendants may appeal to the Crown Court against the conviction and/or sentence that they received in the magistrates' court.
- Committed for sentence - Some defendants tried and convicted in the magistrates' courts are committed for sentence to the Crown Court because the magistrates decide that greater punishment is required than they have the power to impose.
Case Results
Acquittals
CPS Wiltshire
Fox Talbot House
Bellinger Close
Malmesbury Road
Chippenham
Wilts SN15 1BN
Telephone: 01249 766100
Fax: 01249 766101
