Prosecution procedure in Northern Ireland as defined in the 1974 White Paper:
‘Initially, upon the arrest of a suspect the RUC officer prefers what in his view is, or are, the appropriate charge or charges. The accused is brought before the court and his remand is sought in order that the investigations may be completed and an investigation file is submitted to the Director of Public Prosecutions. As soon as the Chief Constable’s investigation file is completed it is in every instance delivered to the Director’s Office. There the facts and information thus brought to the notice of the Director are considered and a decision taken as to whether any, and if so what, prosecution is warranted by the evidence. If in the opinion of the Director no prosecution is warranted a direction is issued to the Chief Constable that no evidence be offered and the prosecution is thus at an end. Where the evidence warrants prosecution directions are issued in writing to the Chief Constable as to the charges upon which the prosecution is to proceed and whether the prosecution is to be summary or upon indictment. At the stage when directions are issued the appropriate charges will generally, and irrespective of the religion of the accused, be the most serious charges warranted by the available evidence as it appears from the written statements contained in the police file. Directions as to whether the accused is to be tried summarily or upon indictment will depend upon the jurisdiction of the respective courts and the nature and gravity of the offences alleged.
Where prosecution is directed to be by way of indictment committal of the accused for trial is then sought upon the charges directed by the Director. Committal proceedings may be by way of preliminary investigation where the witnesses are called to give evidence and make sworn depositions or by preliminary enquiry where committal may take place upon the signed statements of evidence without any without any witnesses having been called.
Committal proceedings in Belfast are generally conducted by Counsel instructed on behalf of the Crown. Outside Belfast they are more frequently conducted by a member of the staff of the Department of Public prosecutions. Once the accused has been committed for trial it is necessary to scrutinise the committal papers to determine whether at that stage there has been any material change in the evidence available to support the prosecution.
Counsel on behalf of the Crown to conduct the trial on indictment may upon consideration of the committal papers and following consultation with witnesses advice alteration of the charges originally directed which have been incorporated as counts in the Bill of Indictment. His advice will be tendered to the Director upon the evidence available to substantiate the various charges or counts in the Bill. He will require to take into account the position created by a witness being unavailable or either refusing or being reluctant to give evidence to establish them unless the accused has either pleaded guilty to or been found guilty of an offence which allows the court to deal with him in a manner fully appropriate to the facts of his case.
At all material times the charges are the charges directed by the Director of Public Prosecutions. Counsel have no authority to alter or withdraw charges without reference to the Director. Since the Director has himself directed the charges which appear as counts on the Bill of Indictment he will not withdraw them without good and sufficient reason. The court may however, in accordance with well-established principles ‘ and practice, decline to allow the trial of an accused to proceed upon any particular count or counts if to do so would be liable to prejudice unfairly the chances of a fair trial.’
(Source: Law Officers’ Department (1974) Prosecutions in Northern Ireland p13-4)