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North Strathclyde Community Justice AuthorityNorth Strathclyde Community Justice Authority
Strengthening Community Justice Together

 

What Is?

Glossary C

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Case Number
A reference number allocated to the case by the Court (or another criminal Justice organisation).
Caution
  1. Simple Caution - non-statutory warning given to adults (those aged 18+) by the police, following admission of guilt. This is an alternative to prosecution, which though not a conviction forms part of a person's criminal record
  2. Conditional Caution - warning under the Criminal Justice Act 2003 (with reparative and/or rehabilitative conditions attached), given by the police after a CPS decision to issue and following admission of guilt, to adults (18+) as an alternative to prosecution, which though not a conviction forms part of a person's criminal record
Chambers
  1. Private room or Court, which the public are excluded from, where a District Judge or Justice may conduct certain sorts of hearings.
  2. Offices used by a barrister.
Charge
A formal accusation against a person.
Civil
Matters concerning private rights and not offences against the state.
Common Law
The law established by previous cases decided.
Community Sentences
A sentence which deals with the offender in the community rather than in prison.
Community Service Order
The offender is requires to perform unpaid work that benefits the community.
Compensation Order
An Order of the Court which requires the offender to financially compensate the victim for any loss, damage or personal injury that they suffered as a result of the offender's actions.
Concurrent Sentence
A direction by a Court that a number of sentences of imprisonment or community penalty should run at the same time.
Conditional Discharge
A discharge of a convicted defendant without sentence on condition that he/she does not re-offend within a specified period of time.
Consecutive Sentence
An order for another prison sentence (or community penalty) to start as soon as a previous sentence expires. This can apply to more than two sentences.
Contempt of Court
An offence, punishable by imprisonment, of disobedience or wilful disregard to the judicial process.
Conviction
When an offender has pleaded guilty or been found guilty of an offence in a Court, they are said to have been convicted. The conviction then appears on the offender's criminal record.
Court Room
The room in which cases are heard.
Custodial Sentences
Sentences where the offender is locked up in a prison, Young Offender's Institution or Secure Training Centre.
Custody
When a person has their freedom taken away. They are kept in a prison, unless they are in police custody, when they are kept in a police cell.