Charles Flanagan
Question:5 Mr. Flanagan asked the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform the average time lapse between the charging of a person on a charge of rape and the case coming to trial. [6928/00]
Ceisteanna – Questions. Priority Questions. - Prosecution of Rape Cases.
The crime of rape is tried in the Central Criminal Court, which is the High Court exercising its criminal jurisdiction. Following the charging of a person on a crime of rape, the papers are forwarded immediately to the Central Criminal Court. The current time lapse between the date when papers, including the Book of Evidence, are sent to the Central Criminal Court and the date that the case is listed for trial is 13 months. Cases now coming into the list to fix dates will be given a date in early April 2001.
The primary reason for this is the huge increase in the number of rape cases being dealt with by the Central Criminal Court. In 1996, 48 rape cases were dealt with, while in 1999 this figure had risen by 104% to 98. The overall number of rape cases received by the court rose by 170% in the same period, up from 48 to 130.
There are, of course, other factors which can have an influence on or contribute to delays in cases reaching court such as the availability of witnesses, prosecution and defence counsels, and the complexity of cases.
Having said all of that, I am still not satisfied that a waiting period of 13 months should apply, given the gravity of the crime of rape. I have taken action, therefore, to address the problem. First, I recently obtained Government approval for the appointment of an additional High Court judge, who took up duty last month. This will enable the President of the High Court, who is responsible for the listing and allocation of cases, to address the problem of delays to the extent that they may be attributable to the shortage of judges. In this connection, I wish to point out that when the two current vacancies, which arose recently on the High Court bench, are filled in the coming weeks, the court will have its full statutory complement of 26 judges.
The second step I have taken is to ask the chief executive of the Courts Service to conduct a specific analysis of the causes of delays in the Central Criminal Court with a view to identifying a precise set of measures in the shortest possible time to address the problem.
The Minister acknowledged in his reply that the situation in the criminal law courts with regard to rape trials is entirely unsatisfactory. As the Minister said, the average wait is over 12 months. At best, his response has been tardy. Will the Minister confirm that the new judge who has been appointed will be assigned to deal exclusively with rape cases?
The Deputy is more aware than most that the listing and designation of judges is a matter for the President of the High Court. I am certain that the president will recognise the problem that exists in the Central Criminal Court at present, which has been identified by Deputy Flanagan.
The Deputy will be aware that rape cases were previously dealt with in the circuit criminal courts. The then Minister for Justice, former Deputy Máire Geoghegan-Quinn, felt the crime was so serious that it should be dealt with in the Central Criminal Court. Moving the cases to that court has inevitably led to a greater degree of delay than normally would have been expected. However, the significant increase in the number of these types of crimes coming before the Central Criminal Court is an important factor.
The total number of cases before the court increased from 73 in 1996 to 163 in 1999. This was an increase of 170%, while the number of rape cases increased from 48 to 130, which was an increase of 104%. The number of cases disposed of by the court also increased from a total of 71 in 1996 to 127 in 1999. The number of rape cases disposed of in 1996 amounted to 48. This number increased in 1998 and 1999.
It would not be possible to give an exhaustive reason for the time lapse but, in addition to the increases in the workload, I point out to Deputy Flanagan that the complexity of particular cases can be a contributory factor. As the Deputy is aware, it is impossible to foretell the length of a given trial. For example, cases with an equal number of witnesses may include different issues to be considered by the court and the trial length can be different. I obtained approval for the appointment of an additional High Court judge, who took up duty last month. The complement of the court will be increased to 26, which is its full complement. I am certain that this will have an effect.
In view of the shambles which obtains in this area, does the Minister accept that a meeting between him and the President of the High Court is essential to ensure this matter is addressed?
The Deputy will be aware that the concept of judicial independence extends to the listing of cases and the designation of judges.
It would not interfere with the independence.
I could not interfere in that area. However, I am certain that the President of the High Court will take note of the position and move to do his best to resolve the current difficulty.