Defendant
The defendant (also known as ‘the accused’) is the person who is
charged with an offence.
Lawyers
One lawyer (or team of lawyers) will speak for the prosecution
and one will speak for the defence. If there is more than one
defendant, there may be a different lawyer for each defendant.
Most prosecutions are carried out by the Crown Prosecution
Service (CPS) on behalf of the Crown (the Queen).This is why you
will see or hear the case talked about as R v ‘defendant’s
name’ where ‘R’ means ‘Regina’ or the Queen.The CPS decides
whether or not to prosecute cases the police have investigated and,
if so, what charges to bring against the defendant.
Both lawyers try to persuade the magistrates or jury how the
evidence shows the truth of what really happened.
Witnesses (including you)
There are usually witnesses for the prosecution (whose evidence
is used to try to prove the defendant is guilty) and for the
defence (not guilty).
Whether you are called as a prosecution witness or a defence
witness will depend on which side thinks your evidence is most
helpful to their case.
Magistrates, district judge or judge
A magistrate, district judge or judge may ask you questions
about your witness statement. In a Crown Court trial, the jury can
write down questions which they pass to the judge.The judge then
asks the witness.
If the defendant is found guilty (convicted), the magistrates,
district judge or judge decide the sentence (what happens to the
defendant, such as a fine, community service or a prison
sentence).
The jury (only in the Crown Court)
A jury is made up of 12 people who, as far as possible,
represent ‘the general public’. As jurors are chosen at random,
they are likely to reflect a representative mix of people of
different ages, from different cultural backgrounds, and doing
different jobs.
Once the jury has heard all the evidence, including what you
(and other witnesses) say, they talk in a private room about what
they have heard. They discuss the evidence. If they are sure that
they have heard proof that the defendant committed the crime, they
will find the defendant guilty. If the jury is not sure of a
defendant’s guilt, they must find him or her not guilty.
One member of the jury is chosen to be the ‘foreman’ and tell
the court what all 12 have decided.This is the verdict. Everyone in
the court hears the verdict.
Sometimes, all 12 people cannot agree whether they find a
defendant guilty or not guilty, even if they talk about it for days
or even weeks. If this happens, the judge will tell the jury that a
verdict can be given if at least 10 of them agree (a majority
verdict). If a majority verdict cannot be returned, the prosecution
must decide if it wants to ask for a retrial, which means the whole
case will be heard again before a different jury. If the
prosecution decide not to ask for a retrial, the defendant will be
found not guilty.
Clerk of the court
The clerk of the court makes sure that all the people who should
be in court are there, and that what is supposed to happen happens
on time and in the right order. He or she may also look up the
records of what happened in other trials if the judge needs the
information. In magistrates’ courts, the clerk, often called
the legal advisor, also gives magistrates advice on legal
matters.
Court ushers
When the lawyer says in court that they want to call someone as
a witness, the usher is the person who actually goes outside the
court and calls them in.
Other people
Other people you may see in the court include police officers,
probation officers, members of the Witness Service and journalists.
In some courts, members of the public are allowed to come and watch
what happens from the public gallery.This can include friends and
relatives of the people involved in the case.