Criminal justice act, 1999

Enactment Date26 May 1999
Act Number10


Number 10 of 1999


CRIMINAL JUSTICE ACT, 1999


ARRANGEMENT OF SECTIONS

PART I

Preliminary and General

Section

1.

Interpretation.

2.

Citation and commencement.

3.

Expenses.

PART II

Amendments to Provide for New Drug Related Offence

4.

Amendment of Act of 1977.

5.

Amendment of penalty provisions of Act of 1977.

6.

Amendment of defence provisions of Act of 1977.

7.

Amendment of Act of 1994.

PART III

Amendments to Abolish Preliminary Examinations

8.

Amendment of section 4 of Act of 1967.

9.

Insertion of Part IA in Act of 1967.

10.

Amendment or repeal of other provisions of Act of 1967.

11.

Amendment of Offences against the State Act, 1939.

12.

Amendment of Act of 1962.

13.

Amendment of Act of 1973.

14.

Amendment of Criminal Law (Jurisdiction) Act, 1976.

15.

Amendment of Act of 1981.

16.

Amendment of Act of 1984.

17.

Amendment of Act of 1990.

18.

Amendment of sections 5, 7 and 13 of Act of 1992.

19.

Amendment of section 15 of Act of 1992.

20.

Amendment of section 16 of Act of 1992.

21.

Amendment of Act of 1997.

22.

Repeal of other enactments.

23.

Transitional provision.

24.

Amendment of section 3 of Offences against the State (Amendment) Act, 1998.

PART IV

Amendments Relating to Confiscation Orders

25.

Amendment of section 4 of Act of 1994.

26.

Amendment of section 7 of Act of 1994.

27.

Amendment of section 10 of Act of 1994.

28.

Amendment of section 11 of Act of 1994.

PART V

Guilty Pleas and Certificate Evidence

29.

Guilty pleas.

30.

Certificate evidence relating to custody of exhibits.

PART VI

Extradition and Other Matters

31.

Offences under the law of Northern Ireland.

32.

Offences under the law of Scotland.

33.

Amendment of Extradition Acts, 1965 to 1994.

34.

Amendment of Act of 1984.

35.

Amendment of Criminal Justice (Drug Trafficking) Act, 1996.

36.

Amendment of section 15 of Offences against the State (Amendment) Act, 1998.

37.

Amendment of section 18 of Offences against the State (Amendment) Act, 1998.

38.

Abolition of “year and a day” rule.

39.

Witnesses in fear or subject to intimidation.

40.

Relocated witnesses.

41.

Intimidation etc. of witnesses, jurors and others.

42.

Arrest and detention of prisoners in connection with investigation of other offences.

Acts Referred to

Courts (No. 2) Act, 1986

1986, No. 26

Courts of Justice Act, 1924

1924, No. 10

Courts (Supplemental Provisions) Act, 1961

1961, No. 39

Criminal Evidence Act, 1992

1992, No. 12

Criminal Justice Act, 1951

1951, No. 2

Criminal Justice Act, 1960

1960, No. 27

Criminal Justice Act, 1984

1984, No. 22

Criminal Justice Act, 1993

1993, No. 6

Criminal Justice Act, 1994

1994, No. 15

Criminal Justice (Drug Trafficking) Act, 1996

1996, No. 29

Criminal Justice (Forensic Evidence) Act, 1990

1990, No. 34

Criminal Justice (Legal Aid) Act, 1962

1962, No. 12

Criminal Justice (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act, 1997

1997, No. 4

Criminal Law Act, 1997

1997, No. 14

Criminal Law (Jurisdiction) Act, 1976

1976, No. 14

Criminal Law (Rape) Act, 1981

1981, No. 10

Criminal Law (Rape) (Amendment) Act, 1990

1990, No. 32

Criminal Procedure Act, 1967

1967, No. 12

Criminal Procedure (Amendment) Act, 1973

1973, No. 16

Explosive Substances Act, 1883

46 & 47 Vic., c. 3

Extradition Act, 1965

1965, No. 17

Extradition (Amendment) Act, 1994

1994, No. 6

Misuse of Drugs Act, 1977

1977, No. 12

Offences against the State Act, 1939

1939, No. 13

Offences against the State (Amendment) Act, 1998

1998, No. 39

Prisons Act, 1970

1970, No. 11


Number 10 of 1999


CRIMINAL JUSTICE ACT, 1999


AN ACT TO CREATE A NEW DRUG OFFENCE, TO AMEND THE LAW RELATING TO PROCEEDINGS IN CRIMINAL MATTERS, TO AMEND THE LAW RELATING TO ENFORCEMENT OF PENALTIES AGAINST DRUG TRAFFICKERS, TO ESTABLISH RULES RELATING TO THE SENTENCING OF PERSONS WHO HAVE ENTERED GUILTY PLEAS, TO PROVIDE FOR EVIDENCE BY CERTIFICATE IN RELATION TO EXHIBITS, TO AMEND THE LAW RELATING TO THE CERTIFICATION, FOR EXTRADITION PURPOSES, OF CERTAIN OFFENCES UNDER THE LAW OF NORTHERN IRELAND AND SCOTLAND AND THE LAW DEFINING THE JUDGES WHO HAVE JURISDICTION TO HEAR EXTRADITION MATTERS, TO ABOLISH THE “YEAR AND A DAY” RULE, TO AMEND SECTION 4 OF THE CRIMINAL JUSTICE ACT, 1984, TO AMEND THE OFFENCES AGAINST THE STATE (AMENDMENT) ACT, 1998, TO PROVIDE FOR THE GIVING OF EVIDENCE THROUGH A LIVE TELEVISION LINK BY WITNESSES IN FEAR OR SUBJECT TO INTIMIDATION, FOR THE PROTECTION OF THE WHEREABOUTS AND IDENTITY OF WITNESSES UNDER A GARDA SíOCHáNA WITNESS PROTECTION PROGRAMME, FOR THE OFFENCE OF INTIMIDATION OF WITNESSES, JURORS AND OTHER PERSONS AND FOR THE ARREST AND DETENTION OF PRISONERS IN CONNECTION WITH THE INVESTIGATION OF OFFENCES AND TO PROVIDE FOR OTHER RELATED MATTERS. [26th May, 1999]

BE IT ENACTED BY THE OIREACHTAS AS FOLLOWS:

PART I

Preliminary And General

Interpretation.

1.—(1) In this Act—

“the Act of 1962” means the Criminal Justice (Legal Aid) Act, 1962 ;

“the Act of 1967” means the Criminal Procedure Act, 1967 ;

“the Act of 1973” means the Criminal Procedure (Amendment) Act, 1973 ;

“the Act of 1977” means the Misuse of Drugs Act, 1977 ;

“the Act of 1981” means the Criminal Law (Rape) Act, 1981 ;

“the Act of 1984” means the Criminal Justice Act, 1984 ;

“the Act of 1990” means the Criminal Justice (Forensic Evidence) Act, 1990 ;

“the Act of 1992” means the Criminal Evidence Act, 1992 ;

“the Act of 1994” means the Criminal Justice Act, 1994 ;

“the Act of 1997” means the Criminal Justice (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act, 1997 ;

“the Minister” means the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform.

(2) A reference in this Act to any other enactment is to that enactment as amended, adapted or extended by or under any subsequent enactment including this Act.

Citation and commencement.

2.—(1) This Act may be cited as the Criminal Justice Act, 1999.

(2) This Act, other than Part VI, shall come into operation on such day or days as, by order or orders made by the Minister, may be fixed therefor either generally or with reference to any particular purpose or provision, and different days may be so fixed for different purposes or different provisions.

Expenses.

3.— The expenses incurred by the Minister in the administration of this Act shall, to such extent as may be sanctioned by the Minister for Finance, be paid out of moneys provided by the Oireachtas.

PART II

Amendments to Provide for New Drug Related Offence

Amendment of Act of 1977.

4.— The Act of 1977 is hereby amended by the insertion after section 15 of the following section:

“Offence relating to possession of drugs with value of £10,000 or more.

15A.—(1) A person shall be guilty of an offence under this section where—

(a) the person has in his possession, whether lawfully or not, one or more controlled drugs for the purpose of selling or otherwise supplying the drug or drugs to another in contravention of regulations under section 5 of this Act, and

(b) at any time while the drug or drugs are in the person's possession the market value of the controlled drug or the aggregate of the market values of the controlled drugs, as the case may be, amounts to £10,000 or more.

(2) Subject to section 29(3) of this Act (as amended by section 6 of the Criminal Justice Act, 1999 ), in any proceedings for an offence under this section, where—

(a) it is proved that a person was in possession of a controlled drug, and

(b) the court, having regard to the quantity of the controlled drug which the person possessed or to such other matters that the court considers relevant, is satisfied that it is reasonable to assume that the controlled drug was not intended for his immediate personal use,

he shall be presumed, until the court is satisfied to the contrary, to have been in possession of the controlled drug for the purpose of selling or otherwise supplying it to another in contravention of regulations under section 5 of this Act.

(3) If the court is satisfied that a member of the Garda Síochána or an officer of customs and excise has knowledge of the unlawful sale or supply of controlled drugs, that member or officer, as the case may be, shall be entitled in any proceedings for an offence under this section to be heard and to give evidence as to—

(a) the market value of the controlled drug concerned, or

(b) the aggregate of the market values of the controlled drugs concerned.

(4) No proceedings may be instituted under this section except by or with the consent of the Director of Public Prosecutions.

(5) In this section—

‘market value’, in relation to a controlled drug, means the price that drug could be expected to fetch on the market for the unlawful sale or supply of controlled drugs;

‘an officer of customs and excise’ has the same meaning as in section 6 of the Criminal Justice (Drug Trafficking) Act, 1996 .”.

Amendment of penalty provisions of Act of 1977.

5.— Section 27 of the Act of 1977 is hereby amended by the insertion after subsection (3) of the following subsections:

“(3A) Every person guilty of an offence under section 15A shall be liable, on conviction on indictment—

(...

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