For serious crimes tried at the county level, justices of the peace or the sheriff would issue a presentment to a grand jury, who would either return a "true bill" resulting in an indictment, or not.
If a true bill followed presentment, the individual would be tried by a petit jury by justices of the King's Bench, Common Pleas or Exchequer as they toured the circuits conducting the assizes.
It was more likely that the Attorney-General or Solicitor-General would be involved in prosecutions of serious crimes such as high treason at the Court of King's Bench at Westminster Hall.
Technical barriers were already in place that those prosecuting did so as private citizens, rendering them open to the range of evidential offences imposable by the court.
This Royal Commission's recommendation was not implemented by all police forces, however, and so in 1977, another was set up, this time headed by Sir Cyril Philips.
[4] In 1997, the Home Office tasked Sir Iain Glidewell to inquire into performance of and make recommendations for the CPS.
[2] The Spending Review undertaken by HM Treasury in 2010 (and revised in 2013) has led to a budget decrease of almost 30% between 2010 and 2014, resulting in a restructure of the organisation and a large number of voluntary redundancies.
[2] Headquartered in London and York, the senior management team sets policies and handles corporate matters such as finance and communications.
[11] Prosecutors assigned to CPS Direct are remote workers in order to provide support outside of normal business hours.
[13] The Casework Divisions deal with prosecutions requiring specialist knowledge and experience:[11] The Attorney General oversees the work of the CPS, meeting regularly with the DPP and requesting briefings on matters of public or Parliamentary concern.
Questionable incidents, such as the dropping of the case against John Bodkin Adams for what was believed to be purely political reasons, have not been repeated in modern times.
Whether the CPS is asked for advice or a charging decision is entirely at the discretion of investigators (see History for background on this division of responsibilities in England & Wales).
The code outlines this means that an objective, impartial and reasonable jury or bench of magistrates or judge hearing a case alone, properly directed and acting in accordance with the law, is more likely than not to convict the defendant of the charge alleged.
The seriousness or circumstances of the case must justify the making of an immediate charging decision, and there must be substantial grounds to object to bail.
The prosecutor should be proactive to secure from the police the identified outstanding evidence or other material in accordance with an agreed timetable.
Mishandling of a case, such as failing to disclose evidence, can result in the courts either acquitting a defendant or quashing the conviction on appeal.
Exceptionally, the CPS has invited defendants to appeal when it has concluded that the safety of a conviction was questionable, for example in the case of undercover police officer Mark Kennedy.
[19][20] On 30 October 2020, the Crown Prosecution Service declined to prosecute Sheikh Nahyan bin Mubarak Al Nahyan, a member of the UAE royal family, who was accused by the curator of the inaugural Hay festival in Abu Dhabi, Caitlin McNamara, of sexually assaulting her during a meeting to discuss human rights concerns.