NCJ Number
241569
Date Published
January 2013
Length
25 pages
Annotation
This document provides information and guidance to crown prosecutors to use when making decisions about prosecutions.
Abstract
This document was developed by the Director of Public Prosecutors of the Crown Prosecution Service to provide guidance for prosecutors to use when making decisions about prosecutions. The document presents the Code for Crown Prosecutors as issued by the Director under section 10 of the Prosecution of Offences Act 1985. The Code includes a set of general principles for prosecutors to use, principles for use when deciding whether or not to prosecute, applying the full code test to cases in order to facilitate the decisionmaking process, applying the threshold test to cases, selecting charges for each case that will be prosecuted, how to handle out-of-court disposals, deciding where to prosecute the trial, deciding how and when to accept guilty pleas, and how to handle reconsideration of a prosecution decision. The general principles of the code ensure that the right person is prosecuted for the right offense and that offenders are brought to justice whenever possible, that the law is properly applied, that relevant information is put before the court, and that each case is decided upon its own facts and its own merits. The Code also emphasizes that prosecutors must be are fair, independent, and objective, and that they are bound by the duties set forth in the Code. The Code also notes that Crown Prosecutors must apply the principles of the European Convention on Human Rights, in accordance with the Human Rights Act 1988, at each stage of their cases.