(Supreme Court of Canada) The prosecutor in a criminal case has a duty to act impartially with no notion of winning or losing.
Randall J said: ‘It cannot be over-emphasised that the purpose of a criminal prosecution is not to obtain a conviction; it is to lay before a jury what the Crown considers to be credible evidence relevant to what is alleged to be a crime. Counsel have a duty to see that all available legal proof of the facts is presented; it should be done firmly and pressed to its legitimate strength, but it must also be done fairly. The role of prosecutor excludes any notion of winning or losing; his function is a matter of public duty than which in civil life there can be none charged with greater personal responsibility. It is to be efficiently performed with an ingrained sense of the dignity, the seriousness and the justness of judicial proceedings.’
Judges:
Randall J
Citations:
(1954) 110 CCC 263, (1954) 110 Can CC 263
Cited by:
Approved – Randall v The Queen PC 16-Apr-2002
(Cayman Islands) The defendant complained that the conduct of prosecuting counsel at his trial had been such as to undermine the fairness of his trial. Counsel had repeatedly and disparagingly interrupted cross-examinations, and the summing up.
Cited – Nunn v Suffolk Constabulary and Another Admn 4-May-2012
The claimant had been convicted of murder and his appeal had failed. He now sought disclosure of the forensic material held by the police to his own legal team.
Held: Permission to apply for review was granted, but the claim failed. ‘It is . .
Lists of cited by and citing cases may be incomplete.
Commonwealth, Criminal Practice
Updated: 01 May 2022; Ref: scu.236730
