Everything about The Crown Office And Procurator Fiscal Service totally explained
The
Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service (
Oifis a' Chrùin agus Seirbhis Luchd-casaid a' Chrùin in
Gaelic) provides an independent public
prosecution service, investigates
sudden and suspicious deaths and handles complaints against the Police in
Scotland. (Administrative complaints against the Police in Scotland are handled by
Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary .)
Under the
Scottish legal system almost all prosecution of criminal offences is by
the Crown in the person of
Her Majesty's
Lord Advocate or the
Procurator Fiscal. It is part of the
Scottish Government.
The Service has extensive responsibilities in the investigation and prosecution of
crime. It decides whether or not to start criminal proceedings, even if the accused hasn't yet been arrested or charged by the police, and the
Crown isn't required to give any reason for the decision. The Service is also responsible for the investigation of
deaths in
Scotland; there's no separate system of
Coroner or Coroners Courts in
Scotland. Where the police are believed to have behaved in a criminal manner the Crown Office replicates the role of the
Independent Police Complaints Commission in
England and Wales.
The service is headed by the
Lord Advocate and all
prosecutions are carried out in his or her name. The Lord Advocate is assisted by the
Solicitor General for Scotland. The day to day running of the service is done by the
Crown Agent & Chief Executive and the management board who are based in the HQ in
Chambers Street,
Edinburgh.
The Service employs both civil servants who carry out administration duties and
solicitors and
advocates who represent the
Crown in Court.
History
The office dates back to
Medieval times, with the earliest
Lord Advocate being
John Ross of Montgrenan who the King appointed as his commissioner at a hearing in
Stirling in
1476, then as
procurator for another case in
Edinburgh in the following year. The role was officially acknowledged in
1494. Nowadays The Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service is a Department of the
Scottish Government, led by the
Lord Advocate and the
Solicitor General for Scotland who are the legal advisers to the government and may participate in the proceedings of the
Scottish Parliament.
A similar system now operates in
England and Wales in the form of the
Crown Prosecution Service, which started operating in
1986.
Prosecutors
The Lord Advocate
The
Lord Advocate has responsibility for prosecuting the most serious crimes, in the
High Court of Justiciary and the
Court of Appeal. Unless the cases are of particular importance, such as the
Lockerbie trial held at
Camp Zeist in the
Netherlands, the prosecutions are led by Advocates Depute who are known collectively as Crown Counsel and are experienced advocates normally appointed for a limited period of three years.
Their decision to prosecute is taken in the light of the Procurator Fiscal's
recommendations and a report prepared by the police. The defence is presented by an
Advocate briefed by the client's solicitor or by a
Solicitor-Advocate specialising in Criminal Law.
Crown Agent
The Crown Agent is the principal legal advisor to the Lord Advocate on prosecution matters. They also act as Chief Executive for the Department. They act as solicitor in all legal proceedings in which the Lord Advocate appears as representing his or her own department. They issue general instructions from the Lord Advocate for the guidance of Crown counsel, procurators fiscal, sheriff clerks and other public officials, transmits instructions from Crown counsel to procurators fiscal about prosecutions, and, in consultation with the Clerk of Justiciary, arranges sittings of the
High Court of Justiciary. At trials in the High Court in Edinburgh, they attend as instructing solicitor. They are assisted by other senior legal, managerial and administrative staff.
The Crown Agent also holds the office of
Queen's and Lord Treasurer's Remembrancer
Advocates depute
At the
High Court of Justiciary prosecutions are brought by the Crown Office, who are represented in Court by Advocates Depute who are advocates or solicitor-advocates.
Procurators fiscal
For the majority of crimes in Scotland the Procurator Fiscal presents the case for the prosecution in the
Sheriff and
District Courts, and the case for the defence is presented either by the accused's own
solicitor or by a public defender.
The Procurator Fiscal makes preliminary investigations into criminal cases, takes written statements from witnesses (known as precognition) and is responsible for the investigation and prosecution of crime. This includes the power to direct the
police in their investigation, but except for serious crimes such as murder the police normally complete their enquiries before involving the
Procurator Fiscal. Once someone has been charged with an offence and remanded in custody, the
Crown must bring the case to trial within 110 days or the accused will be admitted to bail. Otherwise, in serious cases (solemn procedure) the trial must commence within 12 months of the date of first appearance in court.
The
procurator fiscal is the local
prosecutor in
Scotland and he/she will have under them a team of Deputes who will represent the Fiscal in Court. A large number of Scottish solicitors spend a period of their career as a Fiscal Depute.
Each Fiscal office jurisdiction will correspond to the local
Sheriff Court jurisdiction and most of the Fiscal offices in Scotland are either in or near the Sheriff Court.
The Fiscal staff are responsible for a wide range of tasks which include the preparation of Court papers and dealing with queries from victims, witnesses and Police. The Procurator Fiscal is also responsible for the investigation of all sudden, suspicious and unexplained
deaths in Scotland.
Prosecution of Crimes
The
law in
Scotland doesn't say that a
crime must be prosecuted, and the
public prosecutors have considerable discretion over what action to take. If they consider it appropriate they can issue a confidential warning which precludes future prosecution, or can make conditional offers of fixed penalty fines for minor offences which, if paid, save the case from going to court.
In some cases, the Fiscal can refer the accused to a social worker or a psychiatrist for support and treatment rather than punishment with the aim of treating the cause of the problems to prevent re-offending.
Fiscal Areas
The Procurator Fiscal Service is divided into 11 areas, with an Area Procurator Fiscal for each. The areas relate to the boundaries of the eight Scottish police forces, except for
Strathclyde which has been subdivided into four areas:
Victim Information and Advice Service
Victim Information and Advice Service (VIA) is a dedicated victim information and advice service within the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service. VIA was created to provide information to victims, bereaved next of kin and keeping them informed about the progress of a case. It also has a duty to advise on and facilitate
referral to other agencies for specialist support and
counselling as required.
VIA works closely with other statutory agencies, such as the
Police and the
Courts and with voluntary organisations, such as
Court Witness Service,
Women's Aid and
Victim Support.
Further Information
Get more info on 'Crown Office And Procurator Fiscal Service'.
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