UK Youth Criminal Legal Process

Initial Contact

means any interaction/conversation between you and a police officer (or other law enforcement officer, such as a school resource officer). This could be for any reason including something the police officer thought you did.

Arrest

means that a police officer is taking you into custody, which could be the police station or jail. This usually means you get handcuffed or put into a police car. A police officer should have a good reason to arrest you: for example, they saw you commit a crime, they suspect/think you committed a crime, or they have a warrant to arrest you.

Voluntary Attendance

means that you are not under arrest, and you do not have to attend the interview. You can leave at any time unless you are arrested. During the interview, you have the right to a lawyer to help you. You also have the right to not answer any of the questions.

Interview

means that the police are asking you questions (or “interrogating” you). During the interview, you have the right to a lawyer to help you. You also have the right to not answer any of the questions. If you are under 18, you have the right to have an appropriate adult to support you during the interview. Your appropriate adult can be a parent, family member, friend, or a specialist.

There are two types of lawyers. The defense lawyer works for you to help prove you are innocent. The prosecutor works for the state to try to prove you guilty.

Charged

means that a prosecutor formally accuses you of committing/doing a crime. A prosecutor will need to do paperwork that lists the crime and the evidence that shows you did the crime.

Bail or Released Under Investigation (RUI)

means you can be released from police custody until your hearing or trial. If you’re given bail, you might have to agree to conditions like living at a particular address or not contacting certain people.

No Further Action (NFA)

means that there is not enough evidence and the police have decided not to charge you and no further action will be taken. This may show up on a security check if you are applying for a job which requires a security check.

Out of Court Disposal

means your investigation is being closed without going to a formal court. This is a way for police to deal with low-level crime and first-time offenders. Out of Court disposals include youth cautions, youth conditional cautions, community resolutions, and conditional cautions for adult offenders (18+).

Magistrates' Court

deals with cases known as ‘summary offences’ such as motoring offences, minor criminal damage, and common assault.

Police / CPS advise on charges

Police and Crown Prosecution Service are involved in all charging decisions before a court.

Not Guilty (Case Closed)

means the court did not find you guilty of the crime you were charged with. The charges against you will be dismissed.

Crown Court

deals with serious criminal cases, for example, murder and robbery. A crown court normally has a jury which decides if you’re guilty or not. It also has a judge who decides what sentence you get.

Trial

is where the Court will decide whether the prosecutor proves beyond a reasonable doubt that you committed the crime you were charged with. This will happen in a courtroom.

Guilty

means that the court has either accepted your guilty plea or you were found guilty of the crime at your trial.

Probation

Probation Officer

is someone who works with people (18 years of age and above) who have been in trouble with the law before and after their sentence, and in the community.

Pre-Sentence Report

means you will have an interview with a probation officer (if you are 18 years of age or above) or the Youth Justice Service (if you are below 18) who will write a report on you. This report has information on why you committed the crime, how you feel about it now, and your background, family, and work circumstances. This information will be used to decide the most appropriate sentence for you.

Youth Justice Service

work with youth (below 18 years of age) who get in trouble with the law.

Sentencing

There are a variety of sentencing options in the UK. They are ordered from least severe to most severe.

Conditional Discharge

means that you are released, and the criminal offence is on your criminal record. No further action is taken unless you commit another offence within a time period decided by the court. A discharge can be combined with a fine which means you must pay the court money.

Referral Order

means you have to attend a youth offender panel. The people in the panel will work with you, your caregivers, and anyone else involved to create a contract that will repair the harm caused by the crime and address the causes of the offending behaviour.

Youth Rehabilitation Order

is a community sentence with different requirements such as attending meetings, participating in an activity, not going to specific places, drug testing and/or treatment, mental health treatment, and/or more.

Custodial Order

means you have to stay in a secure children’s home, secure training centre, youth offender institution, or adult offender institution.