In the Criminal Courts a process was put in place to fast track any cases directly connected with the London 2012 games. The Ministry of Justice state that 84 cases had been listed at London Magistrates' Courts and of the 84, 36 had already been dealt with by the Magistrates' Courts and concluded and 28 were sent or committed to the Crown Court for determination.
The Courts Minister Jonathan Djanogly said "I am impressed by the dedication and commitment of the Courts in dealing efficiently with these cases. It was another example, following the summer disturbances last year, of how flexible and effective the Criminal Justice System can be. I am confident this will continue throughout the Paralympics".
The offences recorded included ticket touting, using false documents for identification purposes, theft, burglary and public order matters. Malcolm Duxbury, a criminal solicitor and a member of one of the Olympic planning committees stated that "at the start we didn't know how many cases we would be dealing with as there were no statistics from other games. It was important to have contingency plans, but fortunately it appears that there were relatively low levels of cases".
The same system will be employed throughout the Paralympic games.
This is not legal advice; it is intended to provide information of general interest about current legal issues.
