Courts system in crisis with thousands of cases stuck in backlog
The backlog of Crown court cases in the West Midlands shot up by two thirds during the Covid pandemic, new figures show.
According to the Ministry of Justice there were 3,651 cases outstanding at Crown courts in Wolverhampton, Stafford and Birmingham at the end of last year.
This marks a 66 per cent spike on the figure from December 2019 when there was a backlog of 2,193 cases, and comes as a Parliamentary report warned that the pandemic has left the courts system in "crisis".
In the West Midlands the delays have hit murder trials, as well as hearings for serious drug cases and sexual offences.
The backlog – which hit nearly 57,000 cases across England and Wales – prompted the MoJ to open up Nightingale courts in Wolverhampton and Birmingham in a bid to ease the crisis.
A temporary site has also opened in Stafford to cater for a backlog of family court cases.
At Wolverhampton Crown the number of unheard cases almost doubled to 1,241 over the course of the year. The backlog rose by 60 per cent to 2020 at Birmingham Crown, and it went up by 42 per cent to 390 at Stafford Crown.
The number of concluded cases at all three courts rose in December for the first time in 12 months, according to the figures.
The watchdog for the Crown Prosecution Service has warned that the caseload for prosecutors nationally is increasing at an alarming rate, while West Midlands Police Chief Constable Sir David Thompson said the delays risked letting down vulnerable victims.
Lawyers have said they are already seeing trials being listed for 2023.
A spokesman for the MoJ said: "We are spending £450 million to deliver speedier justice for victims and this is already having an impact – outstanding magistrates’ cases have fallen by 50,000 since last summer and crown court cases reached pre-Covid levels in December.
“More jury trials are being heard every week, with video hearings and new Nightingale courts boosting capacity while we invest record amounts in victim support.”
