HC Deb 17 December 2001 vol 377 c89W
Mr. Lilley

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what definitions are used for(a) convicted after trial rate in Crown courts in quarterly Business Information and (b) percentage of those pleading not guilty convicted for persons tried at the Crown court in Table 6C of Criminal Statistics. [22281]

Mr. Keith Bradley

The "Convicted after contested trial rate" in the Criminal Justice Business Quarterly Report focuses on those defendants, from Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) records, who pleaded not guilty in the Crown court, no guilty pleas being entered, and a jury was sworn in. The resultant contested hearings include those resulting in a judge directed acquittal as well as those convicted or acquitted on the verdict of the jury.

The "Percentage of those pleading not guilty convicted" given in Table 6C of Criminal Statistics England and Wales is derived from Crown court records and focuses on a larger group of defendants. Non-CPS prosecutions are included as well as some defendants who pleaded not guilty to the principal offence and guilty to other charges. A jury trial may not have occurred and those not convicted include judge-ordered acquittals, judge-directed acquittals and jury acquittals.