"Off-ramps and plungers" for criminal lawyers.

• Author: Bilodeau, Steven

Like the shortcut that bypasses a congested freeway, Alberta's criminal courts are looking for ways to get to the end of the road more quickly and efficiently.

In this context, the ultimate destination is the resolution of a criminal prosecution. Most charges are resolved without a trial, whether it is by guilty plea, guilty to a lesser or other charge, or withdrawal or dismissal of the charge. What causes the terrific logjam is the timing of the resolution. By the time the trial date arises, there is already a significant investment in that file by the criminal justice system including the following:

* file preparation and witness selection by prosecutors;

* preparation of subpoenas by court staff and service of those subpoenas by police;

* The inconvenience and lost wages incurred by witnesses, both civilian and police;

* booking of limited court time.

When the matter is resolved at the trial date, all of these resources are squandered (to varying degrees). What is of greatest concern, though, is the inconvenience to civilian witnesses and the waste of court time. Witnesses who attend court needlessly are further harmed by the offence and may feel resentment of the criminal justice system. It is not unusual to hear witnesses remark that they regret having become involved in the matter and will not do so again. This attitude, while understandable, is obviously not one that the administration of justice wants to foster.

In respect of court time, the Charter of Rights guarantees in Section 11 (b) the right to a trial within a reasonable time. When hours or days of court time are booked for a trial that never comes to pass, that time is simply lost. The "lead time" (the time to get to a trial) gets pushed up as a result.

The inefficiency in the system occurs for a number of reasons. An accused may want to delay the inevitable for as long as possible, either because of denial or legitimate reasons for avoiding the consequences of a conviction (i.e. a job interview goes much more smoothly when the applicant does not have a criminal record, a driving prohibition at harvest time may cost the offender his livelihood whereas the same prohibition in the winter would only be an inconvenience). The blame does not only lie with the accused, to be sure. It is difficult enough to get the prosecution file ready by the time of a trial six to nine months down the road, never mind within a few weeks at the outset of the process.

Early Case Resolution is a...