The defendant sought judicial review of his caution for possession of cannabis, saying that it went again the national guidance against such decisions after the reclassification of cannabis as a Class C banned substance. He had been arrested for a more serious allegation which could not be proved.
Held: If the policy said that no prosecutions should be undertaken unless some aggravating feature was present, then the policy would be unlawful. The police could not suspend operation of an Act of Parliament. The policy expressly preserved the discretion of the officer in each case, and made no explicit provision against cautioning. The request for review failed. Moses LJ said: ‘It is unsurprising that the courts have been so reluctant to intervene in relation to decisions taken concerning prosecutions and particularly in relation to operational decisions of the police.’
Judges:
Moses LJ
Citations:
Times 07-Nov-2006, [2006] EWHC 2370 (Admin), [2006] Po LR 134, [2007] Crim LR 298, (2007) 171 JP 121
Links:
Statutes:
Jurisdiction:
England and Wales
Cited by:
Cited – A, Regina (on the application of) v South Yorkshire Police and Another Admn 9-May-2007
Six youths challenged decisions that they should be prosecuted for offences of criminal damage rather than be given warnings in accordance with the Final Warning Scheme. They said that they had not sought representation at the police station after . .
Lists of cited by and citing cases may be incomplete.
Police, Criminal Practice
Updated: 29 March 2022; Ref: scu.245356
