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Legal Information Access Centre (LIAC) - Hot Topics |
Accused: A defendant who has been committed for trial in the District or Supreme Court for an indictable offence is referred to as the accused.
Acquit: When a person charged with an indictable offence is found not guilty by a judge or jury.
Arraignment: When a defendant who is committed for trial after a committal hearing is called to the court to be read the indictment and to be asked whether he or she pleads guilty or not guilty.
Bail: The release of an accused person pending committal or trial, usually after the person has given a monetary security to ensure that he or she will reappear at court.
Capital punishment: Punishment by death.
Charge: An alleged offender may be arrested and taken to a police station to be charged, that is, officially accused of the offence. Details of the person and the offence are entered in a charge book and the accused person is fingerprinted. The person may be kept in custody until the court hearing, or may be released on bail.
Committal hearing: A hearing by a magistrate in a Local Court to determine whether a person charged with an indictable offence should be tried for the offence. The magistrate only has to decide whether there is a case against the defendant, not whether the defendant is guilty or is likely to be convicted.
Corporal punishment: Punishment by physical pain, such as flogging.
Crown prosecutor: A barrister appointed to conduct criminal proceedings in the District and Supreme Courts on behalf of the Director of Public Prosecutions. Crown prosecutors also appear in appeal matters.
Custodial sanction: A sentence involving detention, especially incarceration in a prison.
Defence: The defendant to a criminal prosecution and his or her legal representatives.
Defendant: A person who has been charged by the police with a criminal offence.
Director of Public Prosecutions: A statutory office responsible for the prosecution of indictable offences in the District Court and the Supreme Court. The DPP is independent of the State Government, which means that the criminal prosecution process is not subject to the political priorities of the government of the day. The DPP determines whether a prosecution should continue after a person has been committed for trial by a magistrate. The DPP can also commence or take over proceedings for indictable offences and for most summary offences in the Local Court.
Indictable offence: Relatively serious offences are classified as ‘indictable’ under the Criminal Procedure Act 1986. These are offences such as murder, armed robbery, sexual assault, arson and drug trafficking. The prosecution specifies the charges in an ‘indictment’ presented to the court. Indictable offences are usually dealt with by a judge, or a judge and jury. However, some indictable offences are dealt with summarily by a magistrate in the Local Court, unless the prosecution or the defendant choose to have the offence dealt with on indictment in the District Court. Examples of these offences are break, enter and steal, motor vehicle theft and malicious wounding.
Information: A written allegation that someone has committed a crime. Any person can lay an information before a court, but it is almost always done by the police.
Judicial officer: A magistrate in the Local Court and a judge in the Supreme or District Court. The role of the judicial officer is to preside over the trial and to rule on questions of law. If there is no jury, the judge or magistrate also decides questions of fact. In a jury trial, the judge explains the law to the jury and at the end of the trial summarises the facts of the case and the relevant law for the jury. If the jury returns a verdict of guilty, the judge then determines an appropriate sentence.
Jury: Twelve people selected from the jury roll, which is compiled from electoral rolls. The task of the jury is to decide on the facts of a particular case, and on the basis of the facts to determine whether or not the accused person is guilty. The decision of the jury must be unanimous. If the jury cannot agree on the verdict, the judge will discharge the jury and the matter may be retried before a new jury if the Director of Public Prosecutions decides to pursue the prosecution.
Offence: A crime either under legislation or the common law made by the courts.
Offender: A person found guilty of committing a crime.
Parole: Part of a custodial sentence served outside prison.
Plea bargaining: Negotiations between the prosecution and the defence as to the charges to be laid and the defendant’s plea of guilty or not guilty.
Police prosecutor: A police officer who appears in Local Courts and Children’s Courts, with the consent of the magistrate, as the representative of the police informant and to conduct the prosecution. If the offence is an indictable offence that may be dealt with summarily in the Local Court, the police prosecutor assesses whether it should be dealt with summarily or on indictment. If the police prosecutor decides that the offender should be indicted, the matter will be transferred to the Director of Public Prosecutions.
Probation: A non-custodial sanction involving certain conditions. These include takeover supervision of the offender by the Probation and Parole Service.
Prosecution: The legal representative of the Crown who conducts the case against a defendant. A prosecutor may be an officer of the Police Service (a police prosecutor) or of the Director of Public Prosecutions.
Remand: An accused person who is required to appear before a court for further proceedings may be detained pending those proceedings (known as 'remanded in custody') rather than released on bail.
Remission: Reduced period of imprisonment for good behaviour.
Summary offence: A relatively minor offence, usually dealt with by a magistrate in the Local Court. There is no jury trial for a summary offence. Most offences are summary offences. (See also indictable offence).
Summons: An order to attend court issued by the court at the request of the informant. The summons specifies the alleged offence and the time and place where the case is to be heard. A summons is usually used for minor offences. It may be served in person or through the mail