The Serious Offences Act appeals is a special judicial process for crimes of varying seriousness according to legal interpretation. There are two levels of crime. There is the serious offence, known as an indictment conviction offence and the summary offence which is considered less serious.
The levels are determined by guidelines under the Provincial Offences Act.This act doesn't include more serious crimes. Any violent crime is excluded. A violent crime is one in which the perpetrator of a crime does so with violence or the intent to cause danger. These are such crimes as burglary, rape, and murder.Summary air pressure regulator Manufacturers crimes have fines of not over $5000 and jail terms of no more than six months. These crimes include traffic tickets for speeding, shoplifting, and possession of small amounts of marijuana without any intent to sell. Statute of limitations requires the trial to be held within six months of the crime. Though the traffic infractions are considered minor, a history of repeated tickets will negatively affect the expense of and ability to get insurance.Indictment Offence crimes have higher fines and jail time. Among these crimes are driving with a suspended license and operating a vehicle without insurance. There is no statute of limitations for this type of crime.Either level has the ability to be appealed. The Appeals court does not hear the crime again. No evidence or witnesses are presented. This court just determines if the evidence was presented in an accurate manner and supported the sentence.
This court has a limited number of possible verdicts. These include dismissing the appeal, require a new trial, support the guilty verdict, order an acquittal, and increase or lower sentences, or change penalties.The appeals process is another area in which the two levels differ. In the summary level, an appeal first goes to the highest court of the jurisdiction, then the Provincial Court of Appeal, then, finally, if necessary, the Supreme Court of Canada. The indictment crime goes directly to the appeals court and then the Supreme court. None of the courts involved with these lesser crimes require a trial by judge and jury.Another difference in the two types of crimes is that the lesser does not require that police have an arrest warrant. The indictment crime does require that they have one. In addition, after five years, for the more indictment crime, the person gets a pardon. A pardon is available after three years for the lesser crime. This is dependent upon the person not having committed a further crime. Fingerprinting is another difference in the two levels of crime. For the lesser one, police are not required to collect any fingerprints. The indictment crime does require that they collect fingerprints.
Though the crimes differ in
seriousness, any person being tried under the Serious Offences Act appeals
should have an attorney. There is legal language that is hard to understand, and
only an attorney can fully understand the meaning. Even though the seriousness
of the two offence levels is quite different, the impact on a person's life is
such that they need the best representation possible.