Kentish Express, Friday 9 February 1979.

Waiting for justice in our hard-pressed courts.

For trial by jury, queue here. By Richard Higgs.

FOR many people awaiting jury trial at a Crown Court, the figure of Justice is not merely blindfolded but seems to have one hand tied behind her back.

Often a defendant who gets through the initial stages of committal proceedings in the magistrate' court now has to wait up to two years for his case to be judged. And sometimes, after these years of ordeal, they are proved innocent.

In the Kent Crown Court, one of the South East's hardest pressed seals of justice, the mounting of untried defendants has the astonishing figure of 650.

According to one official, if no further cases were sent for Crown Court trial from today it would take three months to clear the residue.

Meanwhile, the accused person released on bail faces the anxiety of months of suspicion and trial by public gaze.

Some suffer ill health and are often worn down by the time they have to face the assault of the professional prosecutor. And sometimes charges might involve a mere £5 fine.

Defendants and witnesses are expected to recall minute details of an incident which occurred perhaps 12 months earlier.

Although the courts make every effort to deal with guilty pleas, juveniles and defendants remanded in custody, daily sittings by six courts are under constant pressure.

Pressure is increasing.

Officials responsible for listing cases for trial must fit in those defended which could, with very serious offences such as murder, take up to a month of sittings.

Increasingly defendants facing the more serious charges are being advised to elect to be tried by jury, so the pressure on an inadequate court system increases.

Despite provisions in the 1977 Criminal Law Act aimed at alleviating the squeeze on Crown Courts by empowering magistrates to deal with more types of crime, there has been little improvement.

At the centre of the Kent Crown Court administrative operation is listing office chief Mr. David Elham.

"If we never had another committal for trial from today we have enough work to keep six courts in Kent busy until the end of April," he said.

Delays cause stress.

Mr. Elham added: "The transfer of a variety of cases, including serious motoring charges, to magistrates court has made some inroads into the problem but the situation is still pretty static."

As for the stress experienced by waiting defendants, he said the court relied on solicitors representing cases of real hardship to advise them. In such cases the hearing was often brought forward.

One man who has faced the mental and physical strain of months of waiting for trial is Ashford publican Mr. Reg Ormes.

In July 1977 Mr. Ormes, who runs the "Star" on East Hill, was accused of shoplifting at Cartiers Superfoods store in Ashford. He denied the charge which involved £3 worth of meat.

Knowing that the alleged crime had simply been a misunderstanding over his pub food account and domestic purchases, he elected to have the case tried by a jury.

That way he felt the full story would be revealed and he would be duly cleared.

"My solicitor warned me when I was committed to Crown Court that it would be some considerable time before the case was heard. But I had not expected it to take so long," he said.

In fact it was 17 months before Mr. Ormes, who was on bail, could walk from the Canterbury Crown Court a free man when the case against him was dismissed.

But the delay took its toll. Reg, who was in perfect health before the first hearing, suffered a series of dizzy spells throughout the wait.

"It was terrible. I got anxious about the case and of course the bad publicity was harmful to my trade. But most customers were very understanding, although a few mentioned it.

Now Reg feels there should be some form of extra jury court to deal more rapidly with minor offences such as his. This would alleviate pressure on the courts while helping the anxious defendant.
To relieve the pressure on the Crown Courts sitting at Canterbury Maidstone and Gravesend up to 100 cases from Kent are transferred every year to Surrey or Sussex courts.

Some cases are referred to Kent for hearing though they are fewer in number.

So what is being done to tackle the Crown Courts shortage not just in Kent or the South East, but nationwide?

A spokesman for the Lord Chancellor’s Department, the Government body responsible for setting up new facilities, was optimistic that eight new Crown courtrooms in a £7 million courthouse would soon be built in Maidstone.

This is part of a nationwide court construction programme with a priority in hard pressed London and the South-East.

"Maidstone has been at the top of our list as there are no alternative buildings that could be suitably converted.

Money is not a problem.

"There is no lack of money for the programme. In Kent we have to allow for future demand on court space. Time has been taken in choosing the right site and ensuring accessibility he said.

The spokesman said the average delay for cases heard at Crown Court in Kent was around five months.

A spokesman for the Government’s Property Services Agency confirmed that it was intended to begin work on the new Maidstone Court complex, also providing one County Courtroom in 1980. Completion should be in 1983.

Until then two converted courts in North Kent would help to stem the overflow of delayed cases in the county.