AC3.1 Aims & Objectives of the police and judiciary Flashcards
What does the Chief Police Officer state the aims of the police is
Keep peace and maintain order
Protect life and property
Prevent, detect and investigate crime
Bring offenders to justice
What types of offenders do the police deal with?
All types of crime
If it is a specialist type of crime they may pass it on to another branch (terrorism, HMRC)
Give three examples of specialist police
Anti-terrorism, mountain police, police community support officers (PCSO)
Reach of the police
43 forces in England and Wales
122,000 police officers
The funding in the police
2018/2019 police budget was £12.3billion = comes from councik tax, central governement and private sources (charging for police at football matches)
The Police’s funding has fallen in recent years. E.g. between 2010 and 2018 it fell by 19%. This led to a fall of 20,000 police officers.
Decreasing number of police officers has a negative impact on how effective the police are in enforcing social control. (as there’s less of them to enforce it) E.g. it may mean that not all crimes are investigated properly because they lack the resources to do so and some cases are even dropped altogether. It forces them to prioritise cases so that not all are investigated.
Reach of the judiciary
90 Crown courts
1 supreme court
3,000 court judges split into superior judges and inferior judges
What types of offenders do the judiciary deal with
Not minor crimes (crown court)
Indicatable and triable either way
The magistrates deal with less serious crimes
What is the judiciary?
Judges are experts in the law
Responsible for clarifying law for the jury
.What is the role of the judiciary in the Crown Court
- Advise jury on relevant law
- Decide the sentence
- Ensure a fair trial
- Follow precedents
- Remove the jury if biased/complex
What is the role of the judiciary in the Appeals Court
Supreme Court, make rulings on appeals from lower courts that are of great public importance, which can mean setting laws and new precedents
The funding of the judiciary
2018 - the most senior judge recieved £257,000 while district judges earned £110,000
highly qualified lawyers were put off applying to join the High Court because they could earn up to 3x more in their current post than they could as a judge lead to a lack of judges because suitable candidates (senior lawyers) put off by salary. May affect their ability to hear a large volume of cases.
What percentage of offences are dealt with at the magistrates court?
95%
