5,109
edits
Line 50: | Line 50: | ||
=== 6. Fingerprinting and photographing === | === 6. Fingerprinting and photographing === | ||
A person in lawful custody for an indictable offence (or a hybrid offence where the Crown has yet to elect) may be fingerprinted and photographed. A person may be required to submit to being fingerprinted and photographed under the ''Identification of Criminals Act'', R.SC 1985, c I-1. If the Crown is proceeding summarily, they have no power to | A person in lawful custody for an indictable offence (or a hybrid offence where the Crown has yet to elect) may be fingerprinted and photographed. A person may be required to submit to being fingerprinted and photographed under the ''Identification of Criminals Act'', R.SC 1985, c I-1. | ||
If the Crown is proceeding summarily, they have no power to require fingerprints. If the accused attends court prior to the fingerprinting date, the accused can ask the Crown to elect in court how they are proceeding. Once Crown has stated on record that it is proceeding summarily, the accused will not be required to attend fingerprinting. If the accused has already been fingerprinted and the Crown is proceeding summarily, the accused can apply to the Crown to have those fingerprints destroyed. | |||
=== 7. Varying conditions of interim release (bail variation) === | === 7. Varying conditions of interim release (bail variation) === | ||
Sometimes an accused is unhappy with one or more of | Sometimes an accused is unhappy with one or more of his/her bail conditions and wants those conditions changed. Bail conditions can be changed in Provincial Court with consent of the Crown. However, if a trial has already begun, the judge can make the variation without Crown consent. If there is no consent by the Crown, it becomes a Supreme Court matter (see below). In order to convince the Crown to vary bail conditions, it will be necessary to convince the Crown Counsel that a less restrictive condition is sufficient to meet the concern addressed by the condition or that the condition is no longer necessary. For example, on a spousal assault file, an accused is usually released on a condition that they do not contact their spouse. It is not uncommon that following an incident the couple will want to contact with each other. In these circumstances the Crown will often interview the complainant in order to determine what if any no-contact conditions remain necessary for the complainant. | ||
Should Crown not consent to the proposed bail review an accused can bring an application to review the bail conditions before a judge of the BC Supreme Court under section 520 of the | Should Crown not consent to the proposed bail review an accused can bring an application to review the bail conditions before a judge of the BC Supreme Court under section 520 of the Criminal Code. Review procedures in Supreme Court are difficult for a layperson to navigate through and anyone conducting such a review is advised to retain a lawyer. | ||
=== 8. Charge approval by Crown Counsel === | === 8. Charge approval by Crown Counsel === | ||
In BC, charge approval is conducted by the Crown Counsel, not by the police. On occasion, | In BC, charge approval is conducted by the Crown Counsel, not by the police. On occasion, an accused person will have a compelled court appearance or will be arrested for an offence by the police, but when the Crown Counsel reviews the charges being recommended by the police they may conclude that it does not meet their Charge Approval standard. | ||
The criteria used by Crown to determine whether to proceed with a charge are: | The criteria used by Provincial Crown to determine whether to proceed with a charge are: | ||
More information regarding charge approval is available online at http://www.ag.gov.bc.ca/prosecution-service, in the Crown Counsel Policy Manual | * whether there is a substantial likelihood of conviction; and | ||
* whether it is in the public interest to proceed. | |||
More information regarding charge approval is available online at [http://www.ag.gov.bc.ca/prosecution-service www.ag.gov.bc.ca/prosecution-service], in the Crown Counsel Policy Manual (Policy Code CHA 1). | |||
== C. Appearance requirements == | == C. Appearance requirements == | ||
For summary offences, anyone can appear as agent for the | For summary offences, anyone can appear as agent for the accused if the accused is unable to attend court. | ||
For indictable offences, the | For indictable offences, the self-represented accused must appear in person. | ||
An accused person who fails to attend court without lawful excuse as required under a recognizance, appearance notice, promise to appear, or summons, may be charged with an offence (''Criminal Code'', s 145). | |||
== D. Initial appearance(s) == | == D. Initial appearance(s) == | ||
Matters are generally set for the Initial Appearance Room if the | Matters are generally set for the Initial Appearance Room if the accused has not previously appeared in court for this matter, has not yet obtained counsel or has not set a date for trial or guilty plea. An accused can have multiple Initial Appearances. If the accused person has not yet made his/her first appearance in court, he/she should be instructed to attend their Initial Appearance and obtain the particulars and Initial Sentencing Position from Crown. | ||
If the accused does not have counsel and wants to obtain counsel, an adjournment will likely be granted.The case will be adjourned until the accused has had an opportunity to discuss the case with counsel. If the | * '''Note:''' If the accused does not have counsel and wants to obtain counsel, an adjournment will likely be granted. The case will be adjourned until the accused has had an opportunity to discuss the case with counsel. If the accused is self-represented, he/she should consult duty counsel. | ||
=== 1. Procedure at initial appearance === | === 1. Procedure at initial appearance === |
edits