Court Visit: The New South Whales Local Court - Article Example

Insert Title Name: Institution: Instructor: Module: 16TH MAY, 2009 Introduction The New South Whales Local (NSWL) court was founded by Governor Phillip in the early 19th century with the work of Sidney magistrates. Initially it was comprised of about 157 courts where the hearing of different cases would be heard incorporating criminal cases. The NSWL is the biggest court in Australia where most criminal cases initially enter the court system (Gelsthorpe 2001, p.33). Presently, the entire criminal cases in Australia are concluded within the New Wales local court. The opening charter of justice in NSWL was endorsed by the governor; lieutenant governor as well as judge advocate that had the power to summon a criminal court on early 1787. The governor also had the power of appointing and dismissing magistrates. The magistrates would record proceedings and give them to the governor for inspection. Part A. i) Common offences prosecuted in the state Throughout the assessment of New South Wales Local Courts Statistics, the most common offences prosecuted in the state involve offences like larceny, malicious destruction (damage), and assault occasioning bodily harm, possession of prohibited drugs and driving while disqualified. ii) Role of the prosecutor in the court Having examined the operation of the New South Local Courts, the role of the prosecutor in the court was to interpret legislations and legal principles that were related to the criminal offences to the prosecuted people. The prosecutor assumed the duty of passing judgment on the prosecuted individual where the concluding decision on prosecution lied on his hands. Carlen (1976, p.24) assert that the prosecutor has also the responsibility of making notes during the progress of cases in the court and also collecting fees on the situation where the defendant was discharged on bond. Part B Administering justice in local court The bureaucratic decision making in local courts have become a major feature of the Australia justice system, and its fame emerges to be increasing globally with courts under way or within improvement in nations like U.S. as well as Great Britain. Criminal offences are the most noticeable type of offences within the bureaucratic decision making in local courts, although other varieties are beginning to take hold. For instance in Australia the Mental health courts, domestic violence courts, and community‐based courts in the midst of others are opening to handle a extensive section of the legal workload in many jurisdictions. Criminal law infringements and neighborhood conflicts, in addition to interpersonal disputes are increasingly being referred to problem‐solving courts as compared to customary criminal or civil courts (McBarnet 1994). For the side of the New South Wales local court has criminal authority that deal with the popular criminal prosecutions in New South Wales, they also conducts primary proceedings to determine whether a case should be determined in the district or in the supreme courts. Procedures that are followed in local court hearing; a) The primary day hearing Within the local court, a case is first cited for a short hearing which is identified as the first return day or mention in most courts. The first return day takes about a period of one or two week following the imposition of the charges on the offender. The offender might be in the hands of the police or not yet arrested is summoned to appear in the court. The opening day return is not measured as a complete hearing in view of the fact that its purpose is for the court to ascertain the foundation of the case (Christie 2000). The lawbreaker is more often than not asked whether he/she may prefer to plead guilty or not. In the circumstance that the defendant pleads guilty the court then listens to the facts in the prosecution. The person prosecuted or his lawyer is listened to on what has to say on the facts or on the appropriate and then imposed a punishment. Here sentencing may be adjourned to another day. If the defendant does not plead guilty then the court sets a hearing date which can either be months away. Sometimes the defendant is usually released on bail until the hearing date. The trial may request the court to impose strict bail conditions on that would protect the injured party until the hearing. However, it is the duty of the injured party to discuss the desired bail conditions with the police prosecutor b) The hearing process The following steps are undertaken, within the hearing process; i) The case is called in the court and the charge is read out to the defendant. ii) The defendant is asked to plead guilty or not. iii) If the defendant pleads guilty the prosecutor then reads out the facts. iv) The defendant or his solicitor is given a chance to speak on the facts. v) The magistrate then makes a decision about the penalty. Note: In case the defendant declines to plead guilty the witnesses are called by the prosecutor where the defendant or his advocate gets hold of the chance to query the witnesses. The defendant or his advocate could name the witness and the prosecutor can question this witness. The defendant is provided with the opportunity to comment on the evidence. The prosecutor then makes his/her verdict before the magistrate makes his/her decision regarding the guilt of the defendant. If the defendant is found guilty then the magistrate makes the decision about the penalty. c) Standard of evidence The standard of evidence for most criminal cases is created to be proved fully. In order to testify a charge of for instance a physical attack, they are called upon to verify to the court, all the matters that encompass the attacker, for example whether the force was used or not. d) Victim’s evidence During the physical assault case, for instance where a woman was assaulted, she may appear to be the solitary witness during the court proceedings that involves her case. The proof given by the woman is exceptionally imperative to the prosecution of the case. With no proof, the case may be dismissed owing to lack of substantiation. The woman’s evidence alone is sufficient to prove the case and can be strengthened by any other evidence supports her claim. Within this perspective, the woman could create proof from the doctor (Gelsthorpe 2001, p.103-105). The treating doctor may give the effects of any injury inflicted to the woman’s body. This evidence has enough weight if the assaulted woman visited the doctor as soon as possible after the occurrence of the attack. e) Sentencing Within the circumstance where the court finds the defendant to be guilty of the battering or when an accussed pleads guilty, he/she may be given charges like imprisonment for some period or fine (asked to pay some charges. The defendant could be under custody where need be or be placed under a community service or have the charge dismissed with no record of conviction. f) Appeals A person who feels that justice applied under the local court was unfair has a right to appeal against the conviction or the sentence in the high court or Supreme Court. Subsequent to appealing, the case could be heard ones more. In some situation of the appeal, the outcome could vary and the offender’s conviction could be overturned. The conviction could be nullified and the sentence varied or the appeal be discharged. Criminological theories of justice The criminological theories of justice act as a platform for criminological study. These theories comprise; a) The routine activity theory b) Social disorganization theory c) Self-control theory d) Social bonds theory e) Strain theory f) Differential association theory and g) Labelling Theory. The theories draw attention towards their strengths and weaknesses which have an effect on their applicability in research. They present a superior perceptive on top of the basis of an offence as well as how offences might be prevented (Carlen 1976, p.31). These theories were very important to the magistrates when dealing with criminal cases in the local courts. The theories do not provide enough evidence on the knowledge concerning key issues concerning in the explanation of crime. Within the local courts, for the period of the resolving a crime, the prosecutor refers to all the accessible theories to ascertain the features of a crime. The motive being that, one theory only might not present sufficient information for the explanation of a crime; the theories exemplify the necessity of employing multidisciplinary study as a substitute in the direction of the interpretations as well as explanations for universal and empirical explanation connected to the grounds of crime. Conclusion The NSLW court is a global court in Australia and attends to all kind of cases within the region. As other courts it follows the required court procedures during the resolve of criminal justice. Within the court, an individual may recognize that the magistrate considers a variety of sources or cases of law for the determination of crime. The court system has been improved by first-class explanation of the prosecutors’ duties inside the court. Reference list Gelsthorpe, L. (2001). Critical Decisions and Processes in the Criminal Courts. London: Sage Publications. pp 102-108. Carlen, P. (1976). Magistrates Justice: Space, Time, Presentations and Beyond Absurdity. pp 21-38 Christie, N. (2000). Crime Control as Industry: Towards Gulags Western Style. London: Routledge. McBarnet, D. (1994). Two tiers of Justice. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Read More