Court backlog denying justice to victims
Dorset Police and Crime Commissioner has called it 'shameful.'
Backlogs in court schedules are denying justice to victims and witnesses – according to Dorset’s police and crime commissioner.
Martyn Underhill says the response of the courts to the pandemic has been ‘shameful’ taking too long to resume operations after shut-down.
He says at one point the only courts available to local people were in Portsmouth and Cirencester, although more local courts have since opened.
Some more serious cases have now been so delayed that they could take two or three years before a hearing.
The Commissioner says the situation is putting both victims and witnesses off.
He said:
"The pace of change and the pace of adaptation by the HM courts service has been really slow, they are not fit for purpose, they do not adapt quickly to a crisis."
Mr Underhill said there also continued to be too many cases in Weymouth magistrates court where cases were being double or triple booked, often resulting in victims or witnesses being told to go home and come back another day.