Going to court? Here is what you need to know

Jun 05, 2022 News

==The Court Journal==

By Renay Sambach

Kaieteur News – This article is aimed at being a guide to persons who may find themselves before a court of law for one reason or another. This week, I will share some tips for persons appearing at the Magistracy level.

Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts

The judiciary consists of several jurisdictional Magistrates’ Courts. There is one High Court in each of the three counties and then there is the Court of Appeal, and the final court of resort, the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ).
The Magistrates’ Courts – which represent the majority of courts in the country – deal with criminal matters such as assault, simple larceny, abusive language, robbery under arms, forgery, and landlord and tenant claims.
Before the matter reaches court, there’s a process at the police station to prepare the matter and send it before a Magistrate.
At the police station, if you or someone you know has been charged by the police for a minor criminal offence, either the police will release you on a fixed amount of cash bail and you will be asked to sign a recognizance, or you will be released on self-bail and asked to sign a recognisance.
Bail is a cash bond for a person to be temporarily released from custody pending trial or it can be described as a form of surety for a person to either attend court or return to the police station. Bail can be granted at a police station or the court.
At the police station, bail is usually set in a substantial amount due to the nature of the offence.
As it relates to the recognisance, this will inform the person charged of the amount of bail that is required for him/her to be released from custody, the offence allegedly committed and it also indicates the date and which court you must attend.
Notably, if the person who was released on self-bail fails to appear in court on the date the matter is called, the Magistrate can issue an arrest warrant and he/she would be in debt to the state. On the other hand, if the persons who paid cash bail fail to appear in court, their money will be forfeited and the Magistrate can also issue an arrest warrant.
As it relates to persons being charged for serious offences like murder, the person would be kept in police custody until their court date – bail is not allowed for such offences.
It should be noted that not all criminal offences are bailable and not all persons who appear in court for bailable offences are placed on bail. In court, bail is often granted at the Magistrate’s discretion and it is sometimes granted with conditions attached to it based on the request of the prosecutor.
Some offences are disposed of in the Magistrate’s Court, whereas for the more serious offences like murder, rape, and treason, a preliminary inquiry (PI) or paper committal will be done in the Magistrate’s Court to determine whether or not there is sufficient evidence against the defendant for him/her to be committed to stand trial in the High Court.
Some bailable offences are larceny charges such as ‘simple larceny,’ ‘larceny from the person,’ ‘break and enter and larceny;’ assault charges; threatening and abusive language. In some instances, bail is granted for serious offences like sexual assault charges, rape, carnal knowledge, and even causing death by dangerous driving.

APPEARING IN COURT
The first hearing of a matter is when most persons or their attorney tries to secure bail.
After the charge is read to the defendant, the defendant is then asked to enter a plea either of guilty or not guilty. With a not guilty plea, the matter will have to go to trial for the court to decide, based on the evidence that is presented to the court, whether or not the defendant is guilty of the offence charged.
This is the opportunity to make a bail application to the court. After making a bail application, if the court sees the defendant as a flight risk or the defendant is known to the police from previously committing other offences, bail may be refused, while others may be placed on a reasonable amount or substantial amount.
When bail is granted by a Magistrate, the bail is then paid by the person posting bail for that defendant at the Supreme Court Registry and a receipt will then be handed to the person posting the bail. This receipt must be kept until the end of the matter.
In some instances, when bail is granted to a defendant conditions may be attached. Some conditions attached to bail are a defendant may be required to lodge his/her passport, report at an identified police station on an instructed day, keep-the-peace-bond or stay 100 feet from the virtual complaint.
Other persons are released on self-bail upon their own recognisance. This means that the defendant will not be required to lodge any cash or property, but he/she must sign a recognisance by which he/she promises to come back to court for trial.
If for some reason or the other, your bail application was refused on your first court appearance, you can always renew it during the trial.
If a bail application is denied by a Magistrate, the defendant or his/her attorney could make a further bail application to a judge of the High Court. Judges in the High Court can grant the defendant bail and also reduce the amount of bail that was fixed by a Magistrate.
Additionally, at the end of the PI in the Magistrates’ Court for serious matters, if the defendant is committed to stand trial in the High Court, the defendant or his/her attorney will be required to renew their bail application and the Magistrate will decide if the same amount of bail will be applied.
In some instances, defendants go to court and plead guilty. With a guilty plea, the defendant will be sentenced, fined, given community service, or a stern warning based on the nature of the offence. In some instances, the Magistrate takes into account the defendant’s early plea and a lesser sentence may be given.
While in some cases, both parties tell the court that they have come to an understanding (in most instances compensation) and that they no longer wish to proceed with the matter. The matter will then be dismissed if the court is satisfied.

BAILOR
A bailor is a person whose name is on the bail receipt for a defendant. Most persons wait until the end of the matter to reclaim bail money, but the bail money can be withdrawn at any time during the matter.
If a bailor wishes to withdraw his/her money before the matter is completed, the defendant can find an alternate bailor. However, with no alternate bailor and the bailor informs the court that he/she wishes to withdraw their money, the defendant will automatically be arrested and placed in custody.
Most persons get carried away thinking that after securing bail, they can evade the court by not attending a trial or if the defendant does not fulfill the conditions attached to the bail. However, by doing so, there are consequences for the defendant and the bailor.
If the defendant fails to attend court, the bail will be forfeited and the bailor will lose his/her money, while an arrest warrant can be issued for the defendant and when apprehended, the defendant may not be eligible for bail anymore and will be remanded to prison pending the outcome of the matter.

BAIL AND FINE
What most people don’t know is that bail is different from a fine. The court fines you if you plead guilty to an offence or at the end of the trial if the court finds you guilty.

RECOVERING BAIL MONEY
Bail money is recoverable but a fine also known as ‘mulct’ is an order by the Magistrate for the defendant to pay a given amount of cash as a punishment for a crime or other offences.
At the various courts, either at the end of the matter or during, bailors who wish to reclaim their bail money can visit the court office.
While many persons aren’t aware that they can reclaim their bail money, others have difficulties reclaiming theirs for many reasons.
The most common issues are: most persons misplacing the bail receipt, which is very important in reclaiming bail money, or the bail receipt being soiled or torn beyond recognition. However, all hope is not lost if that happens. Persons can visit a Justice of Peace (JP). A JP has the same power as a Magistrate to issue warrants for the apprehension and commitment for the safe custody of persons charged with indictable offences and can also help in the reclaiming of bail money if the receipt is damaged or lost.