Police and Crime Commissioner Rupert Matthews has called for urgent action to rectify the Crown Court crisis and the serious harm it is inflicting on victims of crime.
Responding to a damning report by Victims’ Commissioner Baroness Newlove revealing the gruelling impact of Crown Court delays on victims, victims’ services and the wider criminal justice system, the Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland PCC said victims of crime were being left ‘broken’ all over again by a system set up to protect them.
He said the Government could not afford to wait until the outcome of an independent review of the criminal courts being led by Sir Brian Leveson before acting.
Baroness Newlove’s research shows frequent adjournments and extended waiting times are causing victims immense stress which is severely impacting their mental and physical health. Some have even taken up unhealthy coping mechanisms such as drug and alcohol use – and even self-harm – as they navigate ongoing uncertainty, she added.
The report found many victims of the most serious offences including rape, murder, robbery and serious physical assaults, are facing years-long waits for justice in the Crown Courts and are unable to work or resume their everyday activities.
It comes as a second report by the Public Accounts Committee (PAC), published yesterday (March 5, 2025) reveals the population of defendants on remand waiting for their cases to be heard is at its highest level for fifty years. With PAC stating that one in twenty of the remand population, some of whom will be found not guilty, had been on remand for more than two years.
Mr Matthews said: “Baroness Newlove’s report makes for extremely distressing reading. How can it be acceptable that innocent people whose lives have already been all but destroyed by crime are forced to endure further suffering by a system apparently designed to protect them?
“I am aghast at the level of crisis we now find ourselves in and it simply cannot be allowed to continue. Yes, we need more emergency funding now to alleviate the pressure, but we cannot bury our heads in the sand and ignore the inherent flaws in the design – the sooner we start to take stock of the failures, the sooner we put it right.
“Tragically, so many victims arrive at court fully prepared to give evidence, only to be turned away at the last minute. There is only so much that can be taken before a victim withdraws all support and we find ourselves in a situation where offenders are routinely walking free from court – this will only serve to compound the public’s distrust in our justice system and ultimately lead to more lawlessness on our streets.”
The report comes as Crown Court backlogs in England and Wales hit record levels.
Official government data shows that by the end of September 2024, there were 73,105 outstanding cases—the highest on record. In response to this crisis, the Government announced an independent review of the criminal courts in December 2024, led by Sir Brian Leveson.
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Posted on Thursday 6th March 2025