The prosecutor sought leave to bring a voluntary bill of indictment, to pursue historic sex abuse allegations against the defendant. The defendant objected to counts founded on facts which were the substance of a charge of indecent assault considered at an old style committal hearing when a Stipendiary Magistrate had ordered a stay of the charge on the ground of abuse of process because of delay.
Held: The objection failed. Globe J said: ‘ for the reasons advanced by the prosecution and notwithstanding the defence submissions, the facts do not justify a stay. I fully accept the finding of the Divisional Court that the decision that was made was one the Stipendiary was entitled to make. However, even treating it with the greatest of respect and caution that must be exercised, there is no actual prejudice that the defendant has identified and I attach little weight to the fact that the allegation relates to one incident rather than a course of conduct. It is a serious allegation and JA is and was capable of giving evidence about it.’
Globe J
[2014] EWHC 3307 (QB)
Bailii
Administration of Justice (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1933 2(s)(b)
England and Wales
Citing:
Cited – Attorney General’s Reference (No 1 of 1990) CACD 1990
A police officer attended an incident where two people were arrested. Complaints about his conduct were made of which he was given notice. A formal investigation was instituted and adjourned pending the outcome of criminal proceedings against those . .
Cited – Darmalingum v The State PC 10-Jul-2000
(Mauritius) The constitutional right of a defendant to have his case tried within a reasonable time applied not just to the initial trial but also to any appeal arising from that trial. Where there had been inordinate and inexcusable delay between . .
Cited – Attorney-General’s Reference (No 2 of 2001) HL 11-Dec-2003
The house was asked whether it might be correct to stay criminal proceedings as an abuse where for delay. The defendants were prisoners in a prison riot in 1998. The case only came on for trial in 2001, when they submitted that the delay was an . .
Cited – Davenport and Others, Regina v QBD 8-Dec-2005
An application was made for consent to file a voluntary bill against the defendants.
Held: Mr Justice Pitchers said: ‘No application for a voluntary bill is, in form, an appeal from a decision from another court. However, at least when a High . .
Cited – S, Regina v CACD 6-Mar-2006
The court restated the principles applying a stay for abuse of process occasioned by delay. Rose VP LJ said: , the correct approach for a judge to whom an application for a stay for abuse of process on the ground of delay is made, is to bear in mind . .
Cited – Crown Prosecuting Service v F CACD 21-Jul-2011
The Crown appealed against dismissal of historic sexual abuse charges for delay by the complainant.
Held: The justification for delay is relevant only to the extent that it bears upon the question whether a fair trial is no longer possible by . .
Cited – Regina v Wright 2014
The court decided to refuse to lift a stay granted by a circuit judge, but to permit the admission of evidence founding counts subject to this delay as evidence of very similar conduct, adduced to rebut any suggestion of concoction or mistake. . .
Cited – Regina v Telford Justices, ex parte Badhan CACD 1991
The defendant was accused of a sexual offence alleged to have been committed some 15 years earlier. He asked the magistrates to dismiss the charge as an abuse of process, and now appealed their refusal.
Held: The onus was on the accused to . .
Cited – Brooks v Director of Public Prosecutions and Another PC 2-Mar-1994
(Jamaica) The DPP successfully applied for a voluntary bill after the resident magistrate had discharged the defendant on the ground that having heard the evidence, there was no case to answer. The challenge to the DPP’s decision to seek a voluntary . .
Lists of cited by and citing cases may be incomplete.
Criminal Practice
Updated: 11 November 2021; Ref: scu.537748
