If the charge is a less serious one that can be handled by police, the Police Prosecution Services Division handle the conduct of the case in the Magistrates Court. The police prosecutor is responsible for assessing whether or not there is enough evidence in support of the charge and may suggest some further investigations be carried out.

The prosecutor is responsible for deciding:
• whether to proceed to trial
• whether to charge the accused with a different offence
• whether to accept a plea to a lesser offence from the accused
• whether to drop the case.

There may be several appearances in the Magistrates Court.

Once it is clear that there is sufficient evidence against the accused to proceed and he/she is not going to plead guilty, the matter will be given a date for trial-usually several months away.

As a victim, you should be kept informed of the progress of your matter by the prosecutor (or another police officer) and the reasons for any important decision.

More Serious Offences

If the charge is classified as more serious, the prosecution is handled by the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions. Initially, the DPP handles the prosecution at Magistrates Court level through its Committal Unit.

The DPP has a Witness Assistance Service which provides information, assistance and counselling to witnesses, both adults and children.

If you are a victim of a sexual assault, you will usually be asked to attend a proofing session with a prosecutor from the Committal Unit of the DPP. This is a meeting at which you provide a detailed statement. (This is necessary, even though you may have earlier given a full statement to the police.) The session will usually be conducted at the Sexual Assault Unit of the Police Department in the presence of a police officer. You can also have someone from the Witness Assistance Service or one of the other agencies listed under the Who Can Help section of the website.

Last Modified: 11 May, 2007
URL: http://www.voc.sa.gov.au