South Australian Current Acts South Australian Current Acts106—Indictable matters commenced by SA Police
(1) The following
provisions apply in relation to an information charging an indictable offence
where SA Police have been the investigating authority and the offence is to be
subsequently prosecuted by the Director of Public
Prosecutions (a "State criminal offence"):
(a) SA
Police must provide the Director of Public Prosecutions with
information in relation to the matter (the "preliminary brief") that is, in
the opinion of the Director of Public Prosecutions, sufficient for the
Director of Public Prosecutions to make a determination (the "charge
determination ) as to the appropriate charge or charges to be proceeded with;
(b)
unless the Director of Public Prosecutions determines otherwise, SA Police
will appear before the Magistrates Court on behalf of the prosecution
until—
(i)
the Director of Public Prosecutions considers the
preliminary brief and makes the charge determination; or
(ii)
the defendant elects to have the relevant offence or
offences called on in the Magistrates Court for the purpose of entering a
guilty plea,
whichever occurs first;
(c) SA
Police must, as soon as practicable after providing the preliminary brief to
the Director of Public Prosecutions—
(i)
give a copy of the preliminary brief to the defendant or
a legal practitioner representing the defendant; and
(ii)
file a copy of the preliminary brief in the Magistrates
Court;
(d) the
Magistrates Court must, in adjourning the proceedings under
section 105(5)—
(i)
have regard to information provided by the prosecution as
to the witness statements and other material to be obtained for the purposes
of completion of the preliminary brief and the time within which it is
expected that the preliminary brief can be completed; and
(ii)
ensure that the adjournment is for a period that—
(A) allows sufficient time for the
completion of the preliminary brief; and
(B) allows an additional period of not less
than 4 weeks for the Director of Public Prosecutions to consider the
preliminary brief and make a charge determination;
(e) the
Magistrates Court must not commence committal proceedings under Division 3
unless the Court has been advised by the prosecution that the Director of
Public Prosecutions has made the charge determination.
(2) If the Director of
Public Prosecutions has not made the charge determination by the time of the
defendant's second appearance before the Magistrates Court in relation to the
charge, the prosecution may apply to the Court for an adjournment of the
matter to enable that to occur.
(3) On an application
under subsection (2), the Magistrates Court—
(a) must
have regard to information provided by the prosecution as to the witness
statements and other material to be obtained for the purposes of completion of
the preliminary brief and the time within which it is expected that the
preliminary brief can be completed and the charge determination made; and
(b)
having regard to that information, may grant the adjournment of the matter or
may dismiss the charge,
(and, if the proceedings are adjourned and at any subsequent appearance the
Court is advised that the Director of Public Prosecutions has still not made
the charge determination, subsection (2) and this subsection also apply
to the Court in relation to that appearance).
(4) The fact that a
charge has been dismissed by the Magistrates Court under this section does not
prevent the charge from being subsequently laid again.
(5) If an information
to which this section applies also includes charges of offences other than
State criminal offences, the Magistrates Court may make such orders varying
the operation of this section as it thinks necessary in the circumstances.