U3 - OAS1A - lesson 4 Flashcards
rights of an accued
trial w/o reasonable delay
right to silence
trial by jury.
legislation protecting accused rights?
Vic Charter
right to be trialed w/o unreasonable delay
every accused person should be trialed without an unreasonable delay (as per S21 and S25 of vic charter). ‘unreasnable’ is not defined by courts
why is right to trial w/o reasonable delay important?
witnesses memory may fade
stress upon the accused
media attention -> difficulty finding 12 impartial jurors
delays -> increase legal costs.
The right to silence
accused is not required to answer any questions other than their name and adress
right to silence legislation
the evidence act 2008
common law - silence can not be interpreted as guit
why right to silence important
reinforce burden of proof
questioning can be intimidating -> right to silence protect vulnrable ppl from being intimidated into incriminating themself.
reduce pwr imbalance - coersion into talking = inadmissable evidence.
right to trial by jury
should accused plead not guilty to an indictable offence, their guilt must be determined by a 12 person jury
right to trial by jurt legislation
the juries act 2000
criminal procedures act 2009
why right to jury important
accurate unbiased decision thru no association with accused
lawyers use clear concise lnag
usually needs unanimous verdict
cross section of community - societal values.
right from unreasonable delay s/w
strengths
no prolonged stress on accused
witnesses memory
weaknesses
reasonable delay can be a long time in certain circumstances
memory can still fade over a ‘reasonable’ time
right to silence s/w
strengths
juries cant make inferences from accuseds silence
upholds persumption of innocence.
weaknesses
accused can be uncop with police
jury may still perceive silence as guilt
right to jury s/w
strengths
accurate rep of society values
encourage lawyers to speak clearly
weaknesses
jury = cotly and time consuming
juries may not always be impartial.
