Delays to criminal trials affected by the ongoing barristers’ strike may not be a good enough reason to keep defendants in custody on remand if the dispute continues beyond the end of November, High Court judges have said.
The Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) Max Hill KC brought a challenge against decisions made in two separate cases in Bristol and Manchester, where judges refused to extend the custody time limits of three defendants whose trials were delayed due to the unavailability of barristers.
