Scottish Criminal Courts

 

Types and structure of Scottish Criminal Courts

The structure of the Scottish Criminal Court is based on four different types of criminal courts that reside in Scotland. The names of the criminal courts are as follows. The foremost one is the High Court, followed by the Sheriff Court. The third one is the Sheriff Appeal Court and, finally, the Justice of the Peace Court. Scotland's criminal procedure of legislation and proceedings is defined in the foundation of the Criminal Procedure (Scotland) Act 1995; it can be noted that although this is the fundamental legislative piece, there are varying types of cases throughout the country; thus, there are other acts that may apply.

  In April 1999 the Scottish Criminal Cases Review Commission was founded to find the actions of law breaking. These cases are then referred to the High Court. This Commission is able to look into a case again when the guilty appeals against being convicted.

Technological equipment, staff, buildings and materials are given by the organization named SCTS short for Scottish Courts and Tribunals Service for funding Scotland’s courts

The SCTS funding does not include UK’s Supreme Court.  The senior-most judge in Scotland sits in the UK’s Supreme Court. Scotland has a different  criminal justice system from  the rest of the UK. There are adamant rules that need to be followed in court; these are built on the Criminal Procedure Rules released in the year 1996 for all the criminal courts.  

Locations   of the criminal case hearings

The numbers of courts   responsible for the hearing of cases related to criminals in Scotland are four. The figure that decides on which case is allotted to which court is the Procurator Fiscal; he decides the location of crime case hearings beforehand.

According to practice, the highest criminal court in Scotland is the High Court .It is present in   sheriff court building that is found in the city premises or insides of a town; they are always close to where the law-breaking happens. The jurisdiction comprises all the areas of Scotland and beyond.  

According to the Criminal Justice System the cases in the Justice of the Peace Court or even the Sheriff Court are taken up when criminality occurs in close proximity to the court. Sheriff Appeal Court is present in Edinburgh.  The High Court   is present in the city of Aberdeen. It is both, a court of criminal appeal as well as a trial court. Some cases are also heard in the High Court locality of Glasgow. Sheriff courts are also present in Tayside, Glasgow and Lothian.

 

Types of cases which might be heard

 According to the Scottish Criminal Justice System the main High Court hears the most severe cases of serious offences. It handles cases of armed robbery, sexual harassment and abuses concerning youngsters. The high court inflicts highest fine penalties.

In contrast, the least serious of cases are tackled in justice of the peace courts for example robbery and theft. The older courts were called district courts which were changed with Jutice of Peace courts with time.The Justice of the Peace is allowed to sentence the criminal to a period of up to sixty days imprisonment.  According to parliamentary legislation the Justice of peace can give a fine of about pounds twenty five hundred. Stipendiary Magistrates is Judge in Glasgow who performs duties like the sheriffs.

The Sheriff Court can handle the remaining criminal cases using summary or solemn procedure.  Housing problems, like rent and mortgage debt are the mild cases which will be dealt in local sheriff court. The local procurator conducts prosecutions in sheriff courts. In the summary procedure, the court can sentence the suspect to a maximum period amounting to only twelve months whereas in the solemn procedure, the court can impose a sentence to an accused or criminal to a period amounting up to five years in prison.  

The high courts that are present throughout Scotland also deal with cases of   murder, human trafficking and rape. Cases are heard by a judge and jury. No limits are placed on the length of prison sentences as serious crimes deserve the strictest of punishments. Prosecution is carried out by advocate deputies.

Main Participates in the court

The Judge

The main prestigious figure, who represents the law, is the Judge or the Justice of the Peace. The Lord Justice Clerk is prestigious judge  of Scotland High Court. Their responsibility is to make sure that the law is being enforced. They are the ones who carry out sentences and also make an accused criminal follow punishment. The Judge is always seated at the rear end of the courtroom on an elevated   Bench. The Judge or Sheriff may be accompanied by a jury during some cases. The Lord Justice General is also a High Court Judge figure. Justice of the Peace always sits alone unaccompanied by any jury.

The Advocate Depute and witnesses

In the courtroom, the advocate deputes or the prosecutor fights against the person charged with law-breaking and presents evidence to back up his argument.  He also presents witnesses who communicate to bring out the facts of the case.

 

The Accused’s Solicitor and Lawyer

The accused person usually has a supporter at court. They are the defense lawyers. Defense lawyers argue in favor of the accused.   In some cases, the accused person has no lawyers and end up representing himself.

  Macer

The court officer, who is also called the macer in the High Court escorts witnesses into the courtroom. This officer needs to show everyone how to move and helps maintain order in the courtroom during proceedings.

Clerk in the Courtroom

The clerk of courtroom keeps record and documentation and is hired by the Scottish Courts and Tribunals Service. He and announces the case,   authorizes punishment and release of criminal. He   also advises the Judge. However, at some localities the clerk is not officially allowed or competent enough to give legal advice for example at   the sheriff court also includes the High Court.

The Criminal

The person, whether male or female, who has been alleged guilty is generally referred to as "the accused." He is the criminal, and the case proceeds to prove him guilty or exempt him from the crime and term him as a free man.

 The Press

The press is present at the locality of the Court to record the proceeding of the case, they may be restricted to make the case public.

 

Procedures in a Criminal Court

The trial

The prosecutor and the other lawyer proceed to call out different witnesses to give evidence in support of their arguments. All the evidence needs to present by both the prosecutor and the defending lawyer, then a decision is taken by the Judge. During  a jury trial, there are about fifteen other people who are hearing the evidence.

 

'Precognition statement'  

The lord advocate prepares witness for a court case by asking them for evidences before the official case; this communication   is called 'precognition statement'.

 

Pleading

At the starting stages of a case, the accused is asked to agree to the charge or charges in the case of several crime accusations they face. They can say they are guilty and the case is finalized. They can also plea as not guilty then a date will be fixed for a trial to take place afterwards. This is followed by a case hearing. The criminal can be found a guilty at any phase of the case.  If for any reason at all, the trial cannot commence as planned due to witness illness for example, a new date can be allocated at this stage so that the case progresses smoothly (Duff, 1999).

The Sentence or verdict

If the accused criminal has agreed guilty or has been proved guilty after the trial commencement because the proof pointed him as the criminal, the court now should decide on the punishment to give the court will make a decision if the accused is to be taken in custody immediately or should be released on bail.

When the criminal is proved not guilty because of inadequate proof he is   like a freeman, he can go with no further strings attached.

Criminal Appeals

In all criminal cases, there is a special allowance for the accused. If the renders the sentence unjust or if it was severer than he deserved, he/she can appeal to the High Court of Justiciary. In contrast, even the prosecutor can also appeal if they are certain the punishment needs to be harsher.  

 

References

Duff, P. (1999). The Scottish criminal jury: A very peculiar institution. Law and Contemporary Problems, 62(2), 173-201.

Eeckhout, P. (2002). EU Charter of Fundamental Rights and the Federal Question, The. Common Market L. Rev., 39, 945.