Page 539 - Magistrates Conference 2019

SAFEGUARDS

Public Policy

• The court is entitled to consider the nature of the offence alleged

because the public interest that crimes be tried and heard may

outweigh the potential prejudice Flowers v R [2000] 1 WLR

2396,

• The right to be tried within reasonable time must be balanced

against the public interest. Thus the Court must take into account:

1. prevailing system of legal administration;

2. prevailing economic, social and cultural conditions;

3. scarcity of financial resources.

Sieuraj Sookermany v DPP et al