You are prosecuting Robert who faces trial in the magistrates’ court for ABH on his neighbour, Lara. Lara is the only prosecution witness who can give evidence of the assault and she has made a witness statement supporting the prosecution. At a pre-trial hearing, the officer in the case tells you that Lara has not responded to the letter warning her to attend court for the trial. Yesterday, the officer visited Lara and she told him that she is not very happy about coming to court because she is worried about what will happen to Robert. The trial is in one week. What is the most appropriate application for you to make to secure Lara’s attendance at the trial?

You are prosecuting Peter, who has been charged on an indictment containing a single count of burglary from his ex-partner, Constance’s house. The count is worded to allege that he entered her property as a trespasser and stole a television, a laptop, £500 in cash and a mobile phone. During the course of Constance’s evidence, it emerged that Constance had sold the television shortly before the alleged burglary and that the sum of cash stolen was £600, not £500 as alleged in the particulars of the indictment. You then close your case and the trial is adjourned. The next day, before Peter is called to give evidence, you apply to amend the indictment by replacing ‘£500’ with ‘£600’ and deleting the reference to the television. The defence case is that Peter was out of the country when the alleged burglary took place. Which of the following is the most likely course for the Judge to take?

You represent Dayna, who is convicted of fraud in the Crown Court and sentenced to three years’ imprisonment. She wishes to appeal against her conviction and sentence but is concerned that the time she spends in custody prior to the appeal hearing may not count towards her custodial sentence. When can a loss of time direction be made?

You represent Brian at his PTPH on a single count of theft of £5,000 in cash from his employer. Brian pleads guilty but is adamant that he stole only £100 in cash. You ask prosecution counsel to agree a written basis of plea but they refuse. What is the correct approach for the Judge to take when dealing with Brian’s plea?

Abigail is convicted of theft following a trial in the magistrates’ court. She is sentenced to a community order with a rehabilitation activity requirement, together with an unpaid work requirement of 150 hours. She wishes to appeal to the Crown Court against conviction but not against sentence. What are the powers of the Crown Court if it dismisses Abigail’s appeal against conviction?

You represent Anwar, who was convicted of sexual assault following summary trial. He was sentenced to a community order. You are of the opinion that, when giving their reasons for conviction, the magistrates defined ‘consent’ incorrectly. In conference, after the hearing, Anwar asks you if he can appeal his conviction to the Divisional Court as a result of the magistrates’ reasons. What is the correct advice to give Anwar about an appeal to the Divisional Court?

Miriam is charged with ABH on PC Wilson. He subsequently recorded his recollection of the incident in his notebook. At Miriam’s trial in the Crown Court six months later, PC Wilson’s recollection is hazy. In his evidence-in-chief, he states that his recollection of the incident was written up in his pocket notebook. Can PC Wilson refresh his memory from his pocket notebook?

Five defendants are appearing on the same day in the magistrates’ court jointly charged with burglary of commercial premises. Each of the defendants is intending to plead not guilty. None of them has previous convictions. Having heard the prosecution case and consulted the relevant sentencing guidelines, the district judge has formed the view that although the offence crosses the custody threshold, the magistrates’ court’s sentencing powers are sufficient to deal with each defendant should they be convicted. What is the best approach for the district judge to take to the allocation (mode of trial) hearing?

You are prosecuting Stephanie, who is on trial in the Crown Court for an offence of kidnapping (an indictable only offence). On the day of trial, you are informed that Margot, a prosecution witness, will not be coming to Court. She has fled the country in fear of her safety, as Stephanie threatened to burn her alive if she came to court. While a useful witness, Margot is not essential to your case and her statement also contains a lot of material useful to the defence case. Therefore, you decide not to rely on her evidence. The defence make an application for Margot’s statement to be admitted as hearsay on the basis that she has not attended through fear. What is the most appropriate response to the defence application?

You represent Malachi at his sentencing hearing. At the PTPH Malachi pleaded guilty to a single offence of domestic burglary. The Judge ordered a pre-sentence report (PSR) on an ‘all options’ basis and warned Malachi that he was at significant risk of a custodial sentence being imposed. This is Malachi’s first offence and the author of the PSR assesses Malachi to be suitable for a community order or a suspended sentence order. Malachi asks you whether the Judge will take into account his guilty plea in deciding whether to impose a community order or a suspended sentence order. What is the correct advice to give Malachi? The sentencing judge