CRIMINAL PRE-TRIAL PROCEDURES: Committal hearings

Criminal pre-trial procedures: committal hearings Cases involving indictable offences first proceed to the Magistrates' Court for a committal hearing. This is the first test of the prosecution case to determine whether or not the evidence is strong enough for a jury to return a guilty verdict in a higher court. a committal hearing will not be held if the defendant pleads guilty to the offence. Committal hearings provide for greater efficiency in the operation of the County and Supreme courts because time is not taken hearing cases where the prosecution evidence is insufficient to support a conviction.

Different types of committal hearings There are two types of committal hearings: the traditional method, which relies on oral evidence given under oath; and the hand-up brief procedure, where evidence is given to the magistrate through sworn written statements; The prosecution serves documents on the defendant at least 14 days prior to the date of the hearing, including sworn statements of all Crown witnesses and photographic evidence. At least five days prior to the committal date, the defendant must notify the prosecution of any Crown witnesses whom it wishes to question by way of cross-examination at the hearing. If the defence does not intend undertaking cross-examination, the committal will proceed by way of depositions (sworn written statements)

Committal mention hearings Committal mention hearing is conducted at the very start of proceedings, where the magistrate is informed of the number of witnesses to be called (may need to be justified) and the anticipated length of the hearing. At this stage the defendant may wish to plead guilty to some or all of the charges

The outcomes of a committal hearing If the defendant is committed to stand trial, at the conclusion of the committal hearing, all evidence is forwarded to the OPP, which refers the case to a Crown prosecutor for the preparation of a presentment. The presentment is the official written charge against the accused, which sets out the alleged offences considered at the committal hearing. If insufficient evidence is found the accused is released but can be charged at a later date if more evidence is discovered.

The strengths and weaknesses of committal hearings StrengthsWeaknesses Hand-up brief procedure allows flexibility to suit the needs of the parties involved. For example, sexual assault matters conducted by way of hand-up brief offers protection to the victim from unnecessary cross-examination at this early stage. It also saves time and the possible trauma associated with a criminal hearing. Even with hand-up brief processes, a victim may still be required at the committal stage to testify under cross- examination, possibly resulting in added trauma for that person. Committal hearings allow for early and full disclosure of Crown evidence. This encourages an early plea of guilty from a defendant where the Crown case is considered to be strong. Where the accused does change their plea before the trial, this may result in a reduction in the eventual sentence at the trial. The use of committal hearings leads to delays in the eventual trial, causing increased stress for remand prisoners who may be found not guilty at trial. In such instances, the suspect's essential rights are at risk if he or she is held in custody for an unnecessarily lengthy period. Where the magistrate dismisses the case at the committal stage, this saves the time and expense of having such cases proceed to the County or Supreme courts, where the outcome of the case would most likely have been a finding of not guilty. In spite of committal hearings occurring, there is still a significant incidence of defendants being found not guilty at the trial where it was clear that the prosecution case was weak. In these instances, the value of having a committal hearing is questionable.