Case waits 'lowest in four years' - courts service hits back at judge claim
Work is being done to reduce delays with court cases and waiting times are at their lowest in four years, Her Majesty's Courts and Tribunals Service said today.
It comes after Midland Circuit Judge Anthony Lowe spoke out at Shrewsbury Crown Court last week, warning the system is 'breaking at every point' with some cases waiting half a year longer than they should.
Judge Lowe warned the lives of witnesses and defendants are being 'put on hold'.
He spoke about staff shortages and empty courtrooms also posing a problem.
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But Her Majesty's Courts and Tribunals Service today claimed waiting times for cases going through the courts have improved and further work was continuing.
A spokesman for the service said: “We are working hard to reduce the time it takes for cases to go through the courts and despite an increasingly complex caseload, including more historical offences, last year waiting times were at their lowest in four years.
“Waiting times are under constant review and we are using new technology to further speed-up the process, as a result outstanding cases in the crown courts are at their lowest since 2000.”
Judge Lowe was speaking after the trial of a 20-year-old Shrewsbury man for assault and having a weapon, which was due to be held this week or next, had to be delayed until early February next year.
One of the causes of the delay was that one of the two crown courtrooms at Shrewsbury was closed for the whole of last week because two judges were on leave.
A recorder might have sat in the courtroom instead of a judge, but none were assigned.
Recorders are appointed nationally and assigned by the Lord Chief Justice.
Judge Lowe said the trial would have been a 'relatively straightforward three-day trial' but that because some courtrooms have been kept empty, Shrewsbury has lost five or six sitting weeks in the last month and several cases were delayed.
He added: “This is a justice system that is just breaking at every point – from the number of police, the number of CPS, the number of court staff, the number of courts, the number of delays. Everywhere you look, our justice system is beginning to be not fit for purpose. Slow justice is bad justice.”
