§ Mr. McNamaraasked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will give separately for magistrates' courts and Crown courts for 1983 the number of cases involving non-scheduled offences in which pleas of not guilty were entered; in how many of these cases verdicts of not guilty were returned; and in how many of these cases trial was by jury.
§ Mr. ScottThe information is as follows:
1983 Crown Courts Magistrates' Courts Pleas 'Not Guilty' entered 176 6,154 Verdicts 'Not Guilty' returned 92 2,774 Notes:
1. The figures refer only to the principal offence.
2. The figures for the Magistrates' Courts include motoring offences.
3. In all non-scheduled cases tried in the Crown Courts, trial is by jury.
§ Mr. McNamaraasked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many persons were charged in Northern Ireland with non-scheduled offences; and how many persons were found not guilty of all or some of the offences with which they were charged in the year 1983.
§ Mr. ScottThe information is not available in the form requested but the following details are available.
The number of persons proceeded against for nonscheduled offences in the year 1983 was 44,236. Records on findings of guilt relate only to the principal offence in each case; on that basis, the number of persons found not guilty of non-scheduled offences was 2,866.