The court considered the standing of a private prosecutor. Watkins LJ said: ‘It is, I also believe, equally well established that, generally speaking, any member of the public may lay an information. There are statutory exceptions to that right and in some instances consent to prosecute has to be obtained from a specified authority. But in the vast majority of the cases it is a member of the public who informs and with rare exceptions that member of the public is a constable.’
Judges:
Watkins LJ
Citations:
[1989] 3 WLR 1088
Jurisdiction:
England and Wales
Cited by:
Cited – Ewing, Regina (on the Application of) v Davis Admn 2-Jul-2007
The court considered whether the District Judge had been correct to refuse to issue summonses for private prosecutions where there was a suggestion that only a private dispute at stake.
Held: It ‘never was any requirement that a private . .
Lists of cited by and citing cases may be incomplete.
Criminal Practice
Updated: 11 September 2022; Ref: scu.267549