Plain language law

New Zealand law explained for everyone

Criminal Procedure Act 2011

Procedure before trial - Provisions applying only to jury trial procedure - Trial before Judge alone may be ordered

103: Judge may order Judge-alone trial in cases involving intimidation of juror or jurors

You could also call this:

"The court can choose a Judge-only trial if someone on the jury is being bullied or threatened."

Illustration for Criminal Procedure Act 2011

If you are on trial, the court can decide that you will be tried by a Judge without a jury. This can happen if the prosecutor asks for it and it is done before the trial starts. The court has to follow the rules about when this can be asked.

The court will only make this decision if they think someone who might be on the jury is being intimidated. They also have to think that the only way to stop this intimidation is to have a trial without a jury. If you are being tried with other people, you will all be tried together with a jury unless the court decides otherwise.

This rule does not affect what is said in section 102. The court can make decisions about your trial based on this rule and other rules. You can be tried by a Judge without a jury if the court thinks it is necessary.

This text is automatically generated. It might be out of date or be missing some parts. Find out more about how we do this.

This page was last updated on

View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=DLM3360167.

Topics:
Crime and justice > Criminal lawCrime and justice > Courts and legal help
Previous

102: Judge may order Judge-alone trial in cases likely to be long and complex, or

"The court can choose a judge-only trial for very long and complex cases."

Next

104: Procedure for trial ordered under section 102 or 103, or

"What happens when you have a trial without a jury"

Part 3Procedure before trial
Provisions applying only to jury trial procedure: Trial before Judge alone may be ordered

103Judge may order Judge-alone trial in cases involving intimidation of juror or jurors

  1. The court may, on the application of the prosecutor, order that the defendant be tried before a Judge without a jury.

  2. An application under subsection (1) must be made before the trial and within the time prescribed by rules of court.

  3. The court must not make an order under subsection (1) unless the court is satisfied that there are reasonable grounds to believe—

  4. that intimidation of any person or persons who may be selected as a juror or jurors has occurred, is occurring, or may occur; and
    1. that the effects of that intimidation can be avoided effectively only by making an order under subsection (1).

      1. If the defendant is one of 2 or more co-defendants to be tried together, all of them must be tried before a Judge with a jury unless an order under subsection (1) for all of them to be tried by a Judge without a jury is applied for and made.

      2. This section does not limit section 102.

      Compare