Crown Prosecution Service - Essay Example

Critical analysis of Crown Prosecution Service Crown Prosecution Services Introduction CPS is an independent prosecuting service. It is a government department handling prosecution of people in England and Wales. The prosecuted must have been charged with criminal offences. CPS is completely independent from the police but the law requires that they work together in providing evidence beyond reasonable doubts. Before the introduction of CPS the custody officers were charged with the role of making decisions to charge detained persons. In the modern days, CPS is charged with making the decision of whether to charge a person with a criminal offence. It is also mandated with establishing the kind of offence a person should be charged with. CPS responsibilities The introduction of CPS came as a result of public cry that investigations of a case should be done independently from prosecution. Per se, the Phillip Commission is attributed for coming up with the Police and Criminal Evidence Act (PACE)1. The act established the fact that there was no uniform system of prosecution in England and Wales. Consequently, the resultant was the birth of the CPS established by prosecution of Offences Act 19852. The main purpose for creating the CPS was to ensure that it conformed to certain roles and functions. Among the roles and functions included making decisions on what offences a person will be charged with within the criminal act, reviewing the cases to check for sufficient evidence that will prove the case beyond reasonable doubt, and taking responsibility for the cases3. CPS was mainly mandated to carry out four functions. However, the CPS, for the majority of its time, did not address its functions to the letter. There are criticisms existing disfavoring the actions of CPS such as the number of cases pending in or facing discontinuation. This paper critically reviews the functions of CPS and any criticism that exists in its dispensation of duties4. Critical evaluation of CPS CPS as a body has its beliefs. It operates by helping to deliver justice across England and Wales. It ensures that it prosecute crime independently and effectively. The body is charged with guidance and leadership provision within a criminal justice system especially due to the radical changes the system may be undergoing. The organization maintains a mission statement that states its’ first and foremost priority5. It believes in delivering justice through the independent and effective prosecution of crime. It also fosters a culture of excellence through initiating support and fostering better results every time. The organization has some set of maintained values. The values include being independent and fair hence the organization aims at prosecuting crime independently, without bias. The organization maintains the values of honesty and openness. In every case partaken by the organization, they explain their decision, set clear the standards on the services the public should expect and be honest in instances where mistakes are committed. CPS treats every individual with respect without discriminating. CPS behaves in a professional manner and strives to achieve excellent results6. CPS is charged with four main duties since its inception. These duties include making decisions on what offences should be charged. They are also responsible for reviewing cases. Case review is done in order to ensure that there is sufficient evidence in order to carry forward with the case presentation7. They are also charged with being responsible for the cases. These cases are passed to them from the police for further action. The final responsibility is conducting the prosecutions of cases in the magistrates and Crowns courts8. Even so, CPS has failed severally in execution of the four mandates. The main criticism built against CPS is the sheer amount of cases that were discontinued. CPS is attributed for the 38 % drop of cases in the year 2004. The implication for the above action saw the taxpayers parting with over £173 million with £24 million directly attributed from CPS9. The creation of CPS aimed at ensuring that an independent body was put in place to present all the evidence collected by police in courts. Per se, the process was aimed at ensuring that criminally prosecuted people obtained fair trials and that a case would present evidence that would go beyond reasonable doubt10. With the help of the director of public prosecutions, CPS determined whether a case was genuine. Both parties enjoy separate independent powers as presented in the constitution. CPS test evidence and the relevance of the evidence. The constitution states that the evidence presented in court should be admissible and reliable. Even so, police agencies have criticized how CPS operates and qualify its evidence. One of the reason why police critic CPS is due to poor management of cases. Many cases are dropped due to poor administrative strategies. Poor administration has resulted in huge figure of cases being acquitted or dropped by CPS courts. Instability in CPS organization has necessitated time to time re-organization as a result of the criticism11. Core defense mission is to advice the defendants on the paramount course of action for pending prosecution. It also assists in prosecution case assessment, building indispensable opposition arguments, and conditions the argument to promote quality results. They are mandated with the role of ensuring that the defendant achieves a quality and fair trial. The defense lawyers often fight to ensure that the defendant gets a fair trial. On the other hand, the onus of proof for a crime is placed on the wits of CPS12. If CPS conducts thorough investigation, of course with the help of the police, both sides will agree to the fact that most defendants are found guilty when they are actually guilty. Defense lawyers, by no means, have the surety that a defendant is guilty or not. There have been so many instances in criminal cases where innocent persons have admitted to being guilty. For example, the high acquittals rates involving rape frequently lead to the prosecution having to reduce the charge to an average offence against an individual. The offender is supposed to plead guilty translating to the high number of assumptions to carry out sanity tests on offenders13. Plea pleading bargaining may be against the principle that all criminals ought to be punished for their unlawful actions (Griffiths & Pritchard, 2010, p. 231). However, if the defendant admits to being guilty then the role of the defense role may be to seek for a lenient sentence based on that omission14. There are numerous stages in a criminal trial and at every stage; the CPS plausibly carries the most of the burden. The period of the first pre-trial hearing at the Magistrates Court, CPS ought to demonstrate a prima facie case to answer to their case charges. In case they fail the case might be dismissed by the Magistrate. Nevertheless, this does not mean that the accused might not face supplementary prosecution as the Crown Prosecution Service may get hold of additional evidence from the police agencies15. In intricate cases, there may be several pre-trial hearings, mainly in cases that are listed at Crown Court. These trials are meant for both sides to establish preliminary procedural matters. Claims and allegations have been made; that defense lawyers and teams intentionally cause postponements in these hearings, and reasons given are that it influences the memories of witnesses, or the delays sustain their income. As pointed out by Burton16, the main problem faced by any person seeking to review such resolutions is having the ability to obtain the reasons for such decisions from the prosecution17. There exist obvious reasons that hinder the disclosure of such facts from similar arguments according to the rational of the prosecution discretion. The choice is only limited when a review is important in cases where similar decisions are at stake. Furthermore, trials may necessitate adjournment due to the Crown Prosecution Service waiting for evidence in forensic results or supplementary reports18. CPS and Defense attorney Under the 1996, (CPI) Criminal Procedure and Investigations Act, during the pre-trial hearings both sides are obligated to disclose beforehand undisclosed points well-known to each other19. Nonetheless, this Act states explicitly that the Crown Prosecution Service ought not to disclose information that they feel can weaken their case. As a result, this exclusive control raises anxieties for lots of defense lawyers20. Nevertheless, the Crown Prosecution Service may also be required to update the defense beforehand of the criminal record or bad character, of any witness that they intend to call21. When a trial commences, the criminal record delivers a starting speech and carry out an examination in chief. This may be done to elicit evidence complimentary to their case. Nevertheless, they ought not to ask or prompt leading questions, nor refer or question any witnesses to prior statements they had made, in spite of arising contradictions. This may prove challenging as the court’s atmosphere may overwhelm the witness. Therefore, the witnesses may forget to point out some information22. All the same, the Crown Prosecution Service ought to be mindful that their solitary purpose may be to submit the facts of the criminal case, and to aid in determining the truth23. The prosecution witnesses are then cross-examined by defense to test their evidence on that case, trying to discredit it or display that they are untrustworthy. However, under the responsibility to put ahead the defendant’s situation, they must not allow their individual viewpoint or any emotions of lawful discontentment to prevent them from this course24. Hence, they must avoid spending time through repeating of questions, bullying, concerns or needless attacks. Protection attorneys have continuously come under judgment for violence tactics. Even so, it is their responsibility to cross-examine powerfully if they are to make sure the person charged gets a reasonable trial25. CPS may then re-examine their witnesses, and they do this to relieve the consequences of the cross-examination, but it must only deal with the factors that it brought up and not used to generate new evidence26. They then produce supporting evidence that can provide a deference submission. If these invites are refused then the procedure repeats, with the defense presenting their situation. Both parties must follow the aforementioned decorum. The defense and the CPS then gracefully provide ending presentations and the jury retires to consider their judgment27. Statutory role of CPS The statutory role of CPS is set under the 3rd section of the Prosecution of Offenses Act28. The requested lawyers acting on behalf of CPS must advice the police on cases for possible prosecution29. The nature of the advice lingers around on the sort of evidence needed to convict a criminal. The lawyers are also responsible for ensuring that the cases under prosecution are the right cases and that they follow due procedure30. CPS is guided by the Code for Crown Prosecutors. It gives guidelines on how to proceed with a case and enable the service to adopt top a fairs and consistent approach. The Code contains all the necessary advice and guidance that is needed for timely response in responding to cases31. In cases where a case is deemed not suitable for continuance, the prosecutor enters a discontinuance notice requiring the proceedings to be brought to an end. However, discontinuance does not implicate that the cases are forever lost; they can be retrieved in the future. CPS charging standards The CPS has an agreement to charging standards for offences. It becomes reasonable to charge the same crime in all police areas and not differ from town to town or different countries. The complete separation of police and CPS has been replaced by the concept of ‘joined-up-working32. The concept involves working across organizational boundaries to tackle shared issues. The witness care units bring together CPS service, the police force and the witness services with the assistance of other criminal justice departments33. Conclusion The Crown Prosecution services (CPS) is the principal public prosecution agency in England and Wales. It is charged with several responsibilities that mandate the prosecution of vast majority of cases. The main responsibilities include provision of legal advice to police and other investigative agencies during the course of criminal investigations. It decides on whether a suspect should face criminal charges and what the charges should consist after conducting thorough investigations. Bibliography Burton, M. 2001. Reviewing Crown Prosecution Service decisions not to prosecute. Crim LR 374. p.378 Daw, R. & Solomon, A. 2010. Assisted suicide and identifying the public interest in the decision to prosecute. Crim. L.R, 10, pp.737-751. Griffiths, A. & Pritchard, J. 2010. Law for Non-Lawyers, 3rd edition. Bangor University. Huxley, B. & Martin, J. 2008. Unlocking the English Legal System, London, England. Hodder and Stroughton Educational Sanders, A. 1985. Class Bias in Prosecutions. The Howard J. Crim. Justice 24(3), pp.176-199. Slapper, G. & Kelly, D. 2003. The English Legal System. Ch. 10. Criminal Justice Process: The Prosecution. (6th Ed.). Cavendish Publishing. Tausz, D & Hoyano, L. 2012. Decision to prosecute: whether decision of defendant to prosecute a child for alleged sexual abuse by her of her two younger sisters amenable to judicial review. Crim. L.R, 1, pp.39-46. Martin, J. 2002. The English Legal System, London, England. Hodder and Stroughton Educational. Martin, J. 2008. The Facts at Your Fingertips: Criminal Law. London, England. Hodder and Stroughton Educational. Read More