Victims of crime have to wait hours to give evidence and often have to seek out from the authorities the outcome of a case, according to an official report on how well (or not) the courts deal with victims of crime.
Victims of crime are supposed to be important to the criminal justice system, as the report from Her Majesty’s Crown Prosecution Service Inspectorate says. According for example to the Witness Charter, witnesses should not have to wait more than two hours to be called to give their evidence. The system is letting victims and witnesses down, the report says, in that too often they have to wait more than a couple of hours. The CPS survey results show that over half (51pc) of victims have waited in excess of two hours to give their evidence and 22pc had experienced a wait in excess of four hours.
The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) is short of staff which is having an effect on its work, the report spells out. In the words of the report: ‘The CPS faces a huge challenge in trying to improve the quality of its service to victims. Areas are struggling to balance the management of performance with the loss of staff …’
The report speaks of how the CPS is ‘under increasing pressure to improve the quality of its service whilst still trying to meet the financial constraints placed upon it and manage resultant reductions in staff numbers. The CPS has reduced its staff by 30 per cent (2467 individuals) over the last five years, and although general statistics show a reduction in the reporting of crime, the CPS is managing an increase in counter-terrorism cases, an upsurge in historic child sexual abuse cases and an even higher number of cases involving violence against women and girls. These are all cases which are by their nature complex, sensitive and often high profile.’
The official inspection covered the ‘quality and timeliness of CPS communication with victims’. As the inspectorate put it, most victims and witnesses are nervous and apprehensive about what, for most, is their first encounter with the criminal justice system. Therefore effective communications is essential to help put victims and witnesses at ease.
Witness Care staff told the inspectors that for example victims are asked to attend at 10am on day one of the trial, even when there are likely to be lengthy legal arguments and an opening speech. This causes unnecessary waiting. And more and more often several witnesses in a case are told at court on the day of trial that they are no longer required to give evidence; which is frustrating.
Inspectors concluded that the CPS should be realistic about what is achievable. It was also essential to work closer with criminal justice partners, not just at a strategic level but also operationally to improve the victim’s experience of the criminal justice system. Chief Inspector Kevin McGinty said: “It is important that the CPS makes sure that all its communications are both timely and effective, and that they live up to their duty of care in making sure that victims feel supported.”
To view the 41-page report visit http://www.justiceinspectorates.gov.uk.
