What is detention until the end of proceedings?

Once an indictment is filed, the prosecution may ask to hold the defendant in custody until the trial ends. The judge checks three conditions: prima facie evidence of guilt, a ground for detention (dangerousness, risk of obstruction, flight risk, or an offence of a type the law specifies), and that the purpose of detention cannot be achieved with a lesser restriction of liberty. Without all three, there is no detention.

The duty to consider an alternative is written into the law (section 21(b)). Common alternatives: full or partial house arrest, guarantors and supervision, electronic monitoring, surrender of passport, no-contact orders. Sometimes the judge orders a detention report from the probation service to assess the alternative. The defendant must be represented at the hearing.

The time limit: if no verdict is given within 9 months of the indictment, the defendant is released, unless a Supreme Court justice extends the detention. The decision can be appealed, and when circumstances change, a renewed review can be requested.

What a lawyer does: examines the evidence, argues that there is no prima facie case or no ground for detention, builds an alternative the judge can accept (suitable supervisors, an address, documents), and manages the proceedings so that detention does not become punishment before trial.

Source in law: Criminal Procedure (Enforcement Powers – Arrests) Law, 5756-1996, sections 21 and 61