Page 4488 - Week 12 - Thursday, 24 October 2019
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The DPP further keeps figures on the number of matters committed to the Supreme Court, found at Table 3, broken down by matter type at Table 4. The actual number of trials and results are all listed at Table 5.
Annual reports for the Office dating back to the 2009-2010 reporting period can be accessed via the following link:
https://www.dpp.act.gov.au/publications/annual_reports
(4) The DPP does not keep statistics on the average or median number of days taken to prepare a case, or the average or median cost to prepare a case. The DPP does keep the statistics on the total number of trial days in the Supreme Court and publishes these in the Annual Report at Table 5, however, statistics for the average cost of the preparation of a case, or the number of days per court case in the Magistrates Court are not kept.
Given the ACT DPP appear matters ranging from from parking infringements to murder across the Magistrates Court, Supreme Court, ACT Court of Appeal and High Court, these figures will vary significantly by matter type and the court of final disposition. The DPP reports quarterly on a KPI of the average cost per matter (JACS Accountability Indicator Output 1.4).
Annual reports for the Office dating back to the 2009-2010 reporting period can be accessed via the following link:
https://www.dpp.act.gov.au/publications/annual_reports
(5) The question of whether or not to prosecute a case is one for the discretion of the DPP or delegate and is subject to the Prosecution Policy published on the DPP website. The Prosecution Policy can be accessed via the following link:
https://www.dpp.act.gov.au/publications/statements-of-policy
The Prosecution Policy of the ACT makes a distinction between a young person (a person who is 12 years or older, but not yet an adult) and a juvenile (a person who is under 12 years old). Factors particularly relevant to the decision to prosecute a young person include the youth, age, or vulnerability of the accused, a witness or a victim (paragraph 2.9(d) of the Policy), the need for general deterrence (2.9(l)) and whether or not the alleged offence is of public concern (2.9(n)).
In relation to the prosecution of juveniles, the Policy states this should be regarded as a severe step and generally a much stronger case can be made for methods of disposal which fall short of prosecution unless the seriousness of the alleged offence or circumstances dictate otherwise. As well as the general factors at 2.9 of the Policy relevant to whether or not the public interest warrants prosecution, there are a number of other factors that are also taken into account with juveniles. These include the age, maturity and mental capacity of the juvenile (2.13(b)), the available alternatives to prosecution (2.13(c)), the family circumstances (2.13(e)), the juvenile’s antecedents including any previous cautions (2.13(f)) and whether a prosecution would be likely to have an unduly harsh effect on the juvenile (2.13(g)).
(6) When a person is charged by police, they are either granted police bail to attend court at the next listing date, which is provided to police by the court, or if they are refused bail, they must appear before the court within 48 hours. The DPP does not keep data about the average listing period for people granted bail to a future court list.
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