King's Inns BL Criminal Procedure cheat sheet

Arrest without warrant: a garda may arrest under s.4 Criminal Law Act 1997 where reasonable cause to suspect the person has committed or is committing an arrestable offence; the suspicion must be held by the arresting garda and be objectively reasonable.

Detention after arrest: s.4 CLAct 1997 permits detention for up to 24 hours (6 hours initial, extendable by a chief superintendent or higher for a further period, and by a District Court judge up to 24 hours total) on reasonable grounds; the period runs from arrest, not from arrival at the station.

Section 2 CLAct 1997 (drug trafficking offences) allows detention up to 7 days on court authorisation; s.30 Offences Against the State Act 1939 allows up to 72 hours for scheduled offences; s.50 Criminal Justice Act 2007 allows up to 7 days for serious offences.

Right of access to a solicitor: under s.5 CLAct 1997 and the European Arrest Warrant/ECHR jurisprudence (Doyle v Ireland), a detained person is entitled to consult a solicitor; delay is permitted only for specific statutory reasons and must be justified.

Charging: where a person is to be charged, the Director of Public Prosecutions decides whether to prosecute on indictment or summarily for most offences; the gardaí may charge summarily where the offence is minor and the DPP has not directed otherwise.

Bail: under the Bail Act 1997 as amended, the court considers the seriousness of the offence, the nature of the evidence, the likelihood of the accused absconding, and any risk of witness interference; refusal must be reasoned.

Time limits: summary offences generally must be prosecuted within 6 months of the offence (s.10 Petty Sessions (Ireland) Act 1851); indictable offences have no such limitation but delay can breach the right to a trial within a reasonable time.

Remand: a person remanded in custody must be brought before the court at least every 8 days (or as the court directs), and remand periods are recorded on a warrant.

Return for trial: after a preliminary examination or on the DPP's direction, the accused is returned for trial to the Circuit or Central Criminal Court; the book of evidence must be served before the trial date.

Disclosure: the prosecution must disclose all relevant material to the defence (Director of Public Prosecutions v Special Criminal Court); failure to disclose can lead to a stay or a retrial.

Jury: in a trial on indictment, the jury consists of 12 members; a verdict may be reached by a majority of at least 10 (Criminal Justice Act 1984, s.25), and the judge may discharge the jury where necessary.

Burden and standard of proof: the prosecution bears the burden of proving guilt beyond reasonable doubt; the accused bears an evidential burden only for defences such as alibi or insanity.

Sentencing: the court must consider the gravity of the offence, the accused's circumstances, and any plea in mitigation; presumptive minimum sentences apply to certain drug and firearms offences.

Appeals: conviction and sentence appeals go to the Court of Appeal (Criminal); the DPP may appeal against an unduly lenient sentence under s.2 Criminal Justice Act 1993, and the Court of Appeal may quash a conviction as unsafe.

Legal aid: the court may grant legal aid where the accused's means are insufficient and it is in the interests of justice; the application is made to the court before or during the proceedings.

Juveniles: children under 12 cannot be charged with a criminal offence; those aged 12 to 17 are dealt with by the Children Court, with limited exceptions for serious offences.