Subjects:

Criminal Law, Blackstone Legislation Guides

Contents:

Introduction: the provisions of the Act

drafting and presentation

implementation and extent. Part 1 Disclosure in criminal proceedings: background to the reform

the disclosure procedure. Part 2 Criminal investigations: the statutory framework

the code in operation. Part 3 Preparatory hearings: the reform of pre-trial proceedings

interlocutory appeals

reporting restrictions. Part 4 Pre-trial rulings

pre-trial hearings

rulings

restrictions on reporting pre-trial rulings

lifting of restrictions

breach of reporting restrictions. Part 5 Mode of trial and committal proceedings: indication of intention as to plea before mode of trial decision

committal proceedings. Part 6 Changes to Magistrates' Courts procedures. Part 7 Tainted acquittals. Part 8 Derogatory assertions. Part 9 Evidence and miscellaneous provisions. Part 10 Serious fraud. Text of the Criminal Procedure and Investigations Act 1996.

The wide-ranging reforms introduced by the Criminal Procedures and Investigations Act 1996 are designed, in the words of the Home Secretary, ""to restore the balance in our Criminal Justice System - to make life tougher for criminals and to improve the protection of the public."";The authors of the guide systematically explain the effects of the new provisions, and examine the extent to which they represent improvements to the current law.

The guide is arranged into logically ordered thematic chapters which mirror the statutory arrangement of the Act's provisions. It should enable all those who work in or who are affected by the Criminal Justice System to understand the impact of the Act and its implications for themselves, their clients or their work. It should also be extremely useful to students of the Criminal Justice System.

The book includes coverage of: the new system of compulsory and reciprocal pre-trial disclosure; the proposed new Code of Practice for police investigations; preparatory hearings for long or complex cases; pre-trial hearings and rulings for other cases tried on indictment; streamlined committal proceedings and abandonment of transfer for trial proposals; changes to model of trial and other magistrates' court procedures; re-trials for acquittals tainted by intimidation; reporting restrictions on derogatory assertions made in pleas of mitigation; miscellaneous evidential and other changes.