What is a Crown Court Plea & Commital?

[boroughlad]

My friends ex partner is in Crown Court this month for charges of Battery, ABH (Which the Judge is raising to GBH) and Criminal Damage (Valuing under £5000). We found out today the Judge is hearing my friends ex partners plea and also doing a commital hearing on the same day and we would like this explaining. Does this mean that he will be committed to prison? What does commital mean?

Thanks for your help.

[Davethedog]

If the judge thinks that the case deserves to go to trial it is "comitted to trial" = a commital

[New Judge]

The Crown Court judge has no routine decision to make on whether the matter goes to trial. If it is brought to trial it must be heard unless there are exceptional circumstances which prevent it. Only if the judge believes there is insufficient evidence to support a conviction (in which case he would direct the jury to return a “Not Guilty” verdict) would he halt the proceedings and this would not be done until the trial begins and the prosecution evidence has been heard.
I assume this is the same matter as you referred to in your earlier questions (the last of which was this one):
http://www.theanswerb...l/Question963886.html

I must say I did not understand what you were saying then and I’m not that much clearer now. A committal hearing is a process in the Magistrates’ court where the defendant is formally committed (that is, sent) to the Crown Court for trial. It usually takes place about eight to ten weeks after the first appearance in the Magistrates’ court. Since, according to your earlier posts, your friend’s ex has been ordered to appear at the Crown Court on 18th January (you said 2010 but I assume you meant 2011) it is unlikely that the matter has reached the Crown Court by now. Until it does the Crown Court has no knowledge of the matter at all. Certainly no Crown Court judge would normally be involved in the proceedings before it appears at the Crown Court for the first time (which is usually a plea and directions hearing).

I am also unclear about the “judge raising the charge to GBH”. Certainly Magistrates (including a District Judge who may be sitting alone in the Magistrates’ Court) have no say in the choice of charge and it is unusual for a judge to become involved. It is the CPS who decides upon

[New Judge]

[Sorry, answer was chopped off]

I am also unclear about the “judge raising the charge to GBH”. Certainly Magistrates (including a District Judge who may be sitting alone in the Magistrates’ Court) have no say in the choice of charge and it is unusual for a judge to become involved. It is the CPS who decides upon the appropriate charge and brings the prosecution. The court judges the issue against whatever charge is brought.

I’m totally confused and cannot properly answer your question unless you can provide a bit more info.

[boroughlad]

NEW JUDGE - Just to clear this issue of the Crown Court Judge raising the charges. In late November 2010 the Police rang my friend saying that the Crown Court Judge had contacted them to get the statement from A&E department that dealt with injuries my friend had sustained. The police also then added that this is unusual for a Crown Court judge to request this but the police said the Crown Court Judge wants to raise the charge from ABH to GBH due to the extent of the injuries my friend had sustained. Today the Crown Prosecution Witness Protection team informed my friend that the charge will be raised in court on the 18th and that the case will be dealt with on that day as the evidence against my friends ex is overwhelming. So my friends ex thinks that he is appearing for a plea hearing only and that the charge is still ABH but this is not the case as the Crown Prosecution Witness Protection team said he will plea and then have a commital hearing as well.

Hope that sounds ok?

[boroughlad]

My friend has been told that the CPS wanted the original charge of Battery to be GBH but this did not happen. Since the offender has appeared at Magistratesd pleaded not guilty on the new charge of ABH (Orignally Battery) which was raised on the day of the Magistrates hearing and then transfered to Crown Court. The Judge from Crown Court has looked at the case and the evidence and asked for the medical report from A&E through the police and not the CPS as he wanted this urgently. Since he has the following charges have been applied:
- Battery (Orignal charge)
- ABH (Being raised to GBH)
- Criminal damage (To the value of £5000)
Why he has done this is because my friend was attacked twice on the same evening not once by his ex the second charge being more serious than the first.