Once a guilty plea has been accepted in the Magistrates Court to an either way case, the Magistrates may still commit for sentence after hearing all factors including the defendant’s antecedents, but he should be allowed to make representations. Magistrates are to commit a defendant for sentence to the Crown Court only when satisfied that their own sentencing powers were insufficient.
Judges:
Kennedy LJ, Brian Smedley J
Citations:
Times 18-May-1998, Gazette 17-Jun-1998, [1998] EWHC Admin 539, [1999] 1 WLR 216
Links:
Statutes:
Magistrates Courts Act 1980 17A
Jurisdiction:
England and Wales
Cited by:
Cited – Gillan v The Director of Public Prosecutions Admn 15-Feb-2007
Before committing the defendant for sentence, the magistrates court had itself decided on disputed facts behind the plea. After being committed to the Crown Court, the defendant asked that court to conduct a further hearing to determine the facts. . .
Lists of cited by and citing cases may be incomplete.
Criminal Practice
Updated: 11 June 2022; Ref: scu.88263