The defendant suffered a degenerative disease affecting his mental capacity, and at trial the issue of his fitness to plead arose.
Held: Where the issue of unfitness arose it was necessary for the court to exercise very careful case management ensuring that it was supplied with proper information and acted quickly. In this case the defendant had awaited twelve months in prison, and this was unacceptable. Where there had been a possible error as to unfitness, there was no statutory provision which might allow a retrial. The court suggested that such a power might be welcome.
Judges:
Lord Justice Thomas, Mr Justice Forbes and Mr Justice Roderick Evans
Citations:
[2008] EWCA Crim 1810, Times 21-Aug-2008
Links:
Statutes:
Criminal Procedure (Insanity) Act 1964
Jurisdiction:
England and Wales
Citing:
Cited – Regina v Leather 1994
In considering whether a child had been abducted, no spatial or geographic element was involved; the question was whether the child was deflected by some action of the appellant from what he would, with parental consent, have been doing. . .
Cited – Regina v Hussein CACD 16-Dec-2005
Whether a procedural mistake might lead to the need for a venire de novo. . .
Cited – Regina v M (KJ) CACD 2003
In appropriate cases, the court should take account of the fact, if it be such that ‘being unfit to plead, the defendant would have no realistic opportunity of going into the witness box and defend himself, nor to give coherent instructions to his . .
Cited – Regina v O’Donnell CACD 1996
Effect of procedural irregularity such as to require a venire de novo. . .
Cited – Regina v M and Others CACD 5-Oct-2001
The court considered the nature of the detention of a defendant when he was found unfit to plead. Rose LJ said: ‘The old orders available to the courts [including the hospital order with restrictions] do not include any punishment or any order that . .
Cited – Regina v Antoine HL 30-Mar-2000
The appellant sought to argue that despite having been found unfit to plead under the 1964 Act, it was still open to him to argue that the defence under section 2 of the 1957 Act applied, and that he was entitled to be plead diminished . .
Cited – Regina v A (Child Abduction) CACD 15-Oct-1999
To be convicted of the offence of child abduction, it need only be shown that the defendant was the effective cause of the abduction, not that he was the sole cause of the abduction. Here the appellant had been convicted after going to London with a . .
Cited – Attorney-General’s Reference No 3 of 1998 CACD 25-Mar-1999
Where a defendant had been insane at the time of a burglary but was fit at the time of trial a court examining his actions under the Act was required to look only to the actions and need not enquire as to the presence of any mental element. . .
Lists of cited by and citing cases may be incomplete.
Crime
Updated: 23 June 2022; Ref: scu.273125