Eoin Ryan
Question:18 Mr. E. Ryan asked the Minister for Justice the plans, if any, she has to expedite delays in criminal trials; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [21798/96]
Written Answers. - Criminal Trial Delays.
Delays in the courts are of particular concern to me and I have taken steps to deal with these delays.
The Courts and Court Officers Act, 1995, provided for an increase of 18 in the maximum of judges of all the courts. I obtained Government approval for the appointment of 16 additional judges i.e. three Supreme Court judges, three High Court judges, seven Circuit Court judges and three District Court judges.
These additional judges have now all been appointed. The provision of these additional judges is enabling the current arrears of court business, including criminal cases, to be effectively tackled and will assist in the prompt disposal of cases in the future.
In addition, the Courts Act, 1996, which formed part of the Government's recent anti-crime package, provides for the appointment of three further Circuit Court judges.
My Department obtained the agreement of the Department of Finance for the appointment of about 45 additional court support staff to assist in the workload of these additional judges. To date about 33 of these staff have been appointed and the remainder are in the course of being appointed. I am sure the Deputy will also be aware that I obtained the agreement of the Presidents of the High and Circuit Courts to hold sittings of those courts during September this year. The numbers of civil, criminal and family law cases disposed of during the special sittings of the Circuit Court in September, 1996 were 228, 40 and 238, respectively. In addition the Central Criminal Court dealt with 17 rape cases in the three weeks from 16-9-1996 to 7-10-1996. I am confident that the measures I have outlined have had and will continue to have a significant bearing on the question of delays in the hearing of criminal cases in the courts.
In addition to providing for increased judicial and support resources, the Courts and Court Officers Act, 1995, introduced a number of administrative and procedural reforms which simplify and speed up the processing of cases through the courts and enhance the efficiency of the courts system. Specifically, with regard to the hearing of criminal cases, the Act does away with the automatic right of transfer of criminal cases from provincial Circuit Courts to Dublin. Such transfers has exacerbated delays in the hearing of criminal cases in Dublin and had also proven very costly in terms of transporting gardaí and witnesses. It is also possible that the incentive to transfer these cases was often nothing more than a wish to have the hearing of the case delayed. Of course, there can be legitimate grounds for such transfers. Therefore, the Act provides that an application to transfer a trial to Dublin will be granted only where the judge is satisfied that it would be manifestly unjust not to do so. Since the implementation of the Courts and Court Officers Act, 1995, undue delays in the hearing of criminal cases in the Dublin Circuit Court have been very substantially reduced. The Act also provides for an increase in the powers of county registrars thus freeing up court resources for the hearing of cases.
The Criminal Justice (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill passed by the Dáil contains measures to streamline court procedures and ensure the optimum use of court resources. The most significant provisions in relation to the courts include the proposed extension from eight days to 15 days of the existing statutory limit for remanding an accused person in custody on that person's second or subsequent appearance before the District Court; proposals to eliminate the need for night courts and provisions allowing for the giving of evidence by the Garda by certificate rather than in person.
To achieve a long-term improvement in the efficiency of the courts it was necessary, in addition to providing increased resources for courts and the streamlining of court procedures through legislative reform, to carry out a comprehensive review of the courts system. In accordance with the commitment in the Programme for Government, I established the Working Group on a Courts Commission to review and report to me on the operation of the courts and the establishment of a Commission on the management of the courts as an independent and permanent body with financial and management autonomy. In May the Government agreed in principle to the recommendation of the working group that such a body be established to manage a unified courts system; this body to be known as the Courts Service and to be created by statute as an agency of the State. On 12 November the Government took a further decision to establish this new service, as approved in principle in May. Work has already commenced in my Department on the details of the appointment of a chief executive and advertisements for the post will be placed very shortly. The new Courts Service will centralise the financial and management administration of the courts in a unified system which will focus on the provision of an efficient, effective and economic system capable of meeting the increased demands being placed on the courts in all areas including that of criminal hearings.
The working group will continue its work in accordance with its terms of reference to review the day to day operation of the courts system and will be submitting further reports to me on various aspects of courts operation.