Court changes for traffic cases
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• Changes in criminal trial procedures are coming into effect which will alter the number of transport cases which find their way to court.
Until recently, criminal cases have been taken to magistrates courts by the police to determine whether there are grounds for proceeding with the trial.
In a number of metropolitan regions, however, a new body, called the Crown Prosecution Service, has been formed to look at each case on its merit before allowing it to proceed to the magistrates court.
The Department of Public Prosecutions says the new system should prove more efficient than the old system, because it will ensure that only the best-prepared and strongest cases will make it to the courtroom.
As a part of the civil service, it is felt that the CPS will also provide a more objective view of which cases should proceed, than would the police.
So far, CPS offices are in operation in each of the metropolitan districts whose central authorities were abolished on April 1 this year.