Crown to oppose bail in all murder cases

Lord Advocate issues new guidance for prosecutors

News, 28 July 2006

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The Crown Office has issued guidance to prosecutors clarifying what should be done when bail or variations to bail conditions are sought for those accused of murder.

The key points in the Lord Advocate Lord Boyd's guidance, announced today, are:

• At the first court hearing in all murder cases bail will be opposed.
• If bail is granted despite Crown opposition, this will be appealed.
• The Crown's attitude to bail will be reviewed at each stage of the subsequent proceedings, but bail will not be agreed to by the Crown at any stage in the proceedings without the explicit instructions of Crown counsel.
• In the three courts where pilot projects are in place (Glasgow, Kilmarnock and Stirling) allowing the electronic monitoring of the accused while on bail, particular consideration will be given to whether tagging is appropriate and, if granted, whether it should be appealed.
• As long as it is considered that opposition to bail or electronic tagging restrictions is appropriate in murder cases, that opposition will be maintained and decisions to grant will be appealed.

The guidance also sets out the information which is required to properly inform decisions about the Crown's attitude to bail. This information will include the police assessment of the risks posed by the accused and his associates, and the potential impact on the community if he were to be liberated.

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