CJS working together for the public

Where the police think there is a risk that you may commit another offence, fail to turn up at court, intimidate the victim or other witnesses, or obstruct the course of justice, they can impose conditional bail. The police can also impose conditions on bail before they have charged you. This means that your liberty is restricted in some way. For example, there may be a condition not to go within a certain distance of a witness's house, or there may be a curfew if the offence was committed at night. The victim of the crime can ask the court to reconsider the conditions of your bail. If you are reported or believed to have breached one of the conditions, you can be arrested and put before a magistrates' court where you may be remanded in custody.

If the police think that you are unlikely to commit another offence, will attend court when required, and will not intimidate the victim or other witnesses or obstruct the course of justice they will usually release you on unconditional bail. This requires that you turn up to court on time. If you do not turn up, the court will issue a warrant for your arrest.

No, unless you have permission from the court. Ask your legal representative.

The CPS is the independent authority responsible for deciding the charge based on the evidence collected by the police, and for prosecuting people charged with criminal offences in England and Wales. The CPS is a public service and prosecutes defendants on behalf of the public, not just the victim. They work with the police to ensure that the right charges are laid and prosecute where there is sufficient evidence for a realistic prospect of conviction.

The jurors are called at random from the electoral register. Everybody on the electoral register has an equal change of being selected, regardless of what community they come from.

No. However you must object to someone sitting on the jury if you think you may know them. Please indicate by raising your hand from where you stand. (The court clerk will explain this at the start of the hearing.)

If you decide to give evidence, then before you give your evidence you will be asked to take an oath on a holy book of your choice, or if you prefer you can choose to affirm instead. The usher should ask you about your preference beforehand. You will swear or affirm that the evidence you are about to give is "the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth".

Oath cards and holy books are available for several religions. If you want to take the oath on a holy book, please tell the court official which book you require as soon as you can. The official can then arrange to have that oath card and holy book ready for you.

Not Guilty - If you are found not guilty this means you have been acquitted and are free to go. The police will continue to investigate the crime and try to find who did it if they think there is more evidence to be found. Currently, you cannot be tried twice for the same offence.

Guilty - If you are found guilty then you will be sentenced. The section of this website on Sentencing gives more information on possible sentences.

Retrial - It is possible that a retrial may be called. There are a number of reasons this could happen and the judge will outline the reasons at the time.

This means that after being sentenced, you are taken straight to the nearest prison, where the sentence will begin. If you have spent time in custody before the trial, the time in prison is often counted as having started from the date you were remanded in custody. If you are aged between 16 and 21 years old, you will be sent to a Young Offenders Institution rather than prison

Your age, background and criminal history, whether or not you pleaded guilty (and at what stage of the proceedings), and whether you have shown any remorse, can all be taken into consideration when you are sentenced.

There is a wide range of community sentences, and the court can order you to serve more than one. If you fail to comply with the terms of the order you could be taken back to court and fined for the breach or re-sentenced for the offence.

• Community Punishment Order means that you have to do a certain number of hours of unpaid work for the community. If you have a job you will have to do it during your own time;
• Community Rehabilitation Order means that for the duration of the order, you will be under the supervision of a probation officer;
• Attendance Centre Order means that you have to do certain activities while being supervised by an attendance centre officer;
• Drug Treatment and Testing Order. A court can order this if you have a drug problem, and it requires you to undergo treatment.

As well as sentences, there are a number of other outcomes that are possible if you are found guilty. These include:

• Fine - this is an order to pay money to the court. The amount can vary considerably depending on the circumstances of the crime.
• Compensation Order - if you are convicted, the court may order you to pay the victim compensation for any injury, loss or damage which they have suffered because of the offence.
• Conditional Discharge - this means that although you have not been punished for the offence, if you commit another offence within a time limit set by the courts, you could be re-sentenced for this offence as well as the new offence.
• Absolute Discharge - this means that although you are guilty of the offence, the court took the view that no punishment was necessary. Reasons for this could perhaps be: because of the circumstances of the crime; your previous good character; if the crime was very minor; or you are very young, or very old.

There is a wide range of sentences for young offenders, all of which have serious penalties if you fail to comply.

• Electronically Monitored Curfew Order involves the use of an electronic 'tag' around your wrist or ankle, and requires you to be in a certain place - usually your home - for certain times of the day;
• Detention and Training Order (DTO) means that you will usually serve the first half of the period of the order in custody, and for the second half you will be supervised by someone from social services or the National Probation Service;
• Intensive Supervision and Surveillance Order (ISSO) means that you will be supervised by a member of the local social services, National Probation Service or youth offending team. It involves surveillance up to 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and you must also undertake at least 25 hours a week face-to-face supervision over the first three months;
• Reparation Order requires you to 'pay back' in some way, either to the victim if the victim wishes, or to the community. This might include, for example, writing a letter of apology, or repairing criminal damage;
• Action Plan Order. This combines punishment, rehabilitation and reparation. This means that the court will set down a series of requirements that you have to comply with for a period of three months;
• Referral Order means that a community-led panel will negotiate a contract with you covering reparation and steps to tackle you offending behaviour;
• A Parenting Order can impose a requirement on your parent or guardian to attend counselling or guidance sessions for up to three months.

If you are convicted in the magistrates' court and appeal against the conviction, the whole trial will be heard again in front of a judge and two magistrates. If it is only the sentence that you appeal against, a Crown Court judge will consider the appeal and decide whether to change the sentence or to keep it the same.

If you appeal against a Crown Court conviction, the appeal will be heard by the Court of Appeal who will either quash the conviction which means it is no longer valid, order a retrial, which means the case has to be heard again, or leave the conviction as it is.