Sexual Offences (Protected Material) Act 1997
| Year | 1997 |
Sexual Offences (Protected Material) Act 1997
1997 Chapter 39
An Act to make provision for regulating access by defendants and others to certain categories of material disclosed by the prosecution or by the Criminal Cases Review Commission in connection with proceedings relating to certain sexual and other offences.
[21st March 1997]
Be it enacted by the Queen's most Excellent Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Lords Spiritual and Temporal, and Commons, in this present Parliament assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows:—
Introductory
1 Meaning of ‘protected material’.
(1) In this Act ‘protected material’, in relation to proceedings for a sexual offence, means a copy (in whatever form) of any of the following material, namely—
(a) a statement relating to that or any other sexual offence made by any victim of the offence (whether the statement is recorded in writing or in any other form),
(b) a photograph or pseudo-photograph of any such victim, or
(c) a report of a medical examination of the physical condition of any such victim,
which is a copy given by the prosecutor to any person under this Act.
(2) For the purposes of subsection (1) a person is, in relation to any proceedings for a sexual offence, a victim of that offence if—
(a) the charge, summons or indictment by which the proceedings are instituted names that person as a person in relation to whom that offence was committed or
(b) that offence can, in the prosecutor's opinion, be reasonably regarded as having been committed in relation to that person
and a person is, in relation to any such proceedings, a victim of any other sexual offence if that offence can, in the prosecutor's opinion, be reasonably regarded as having been committed in relation to that person.
(3) In this Act, where the context so permits (and subject to subsection (4))—
(a) references to any protected material include references to any part of any such material and
(b) references to a copy of any such material include references to any part of any such copy.
(4) Nothing in this Act—
(a) so far as it refers to a defendant making any copy of—
(i) any protected material, or
(ii) a copy of any such material,
applies to a manuscript copy which is not a verbatim copy of the whole of that material or copy or
(b) so far as it refers to a defendant having in his possession any copy of any protected material, applies to a manuscript copy made by him which is not a verbatim copy of the whole of that material.
2 Meaning of other expressions.
(1) In this Act—
‘contracted out prison’ means a contracted out prison within the meaning of Part IV of the Criminal Justice Act 1991
‘defendant’, in relation to any proceedings for a sexual offence, means any person charged with that offence (whether or not he has been convicted)
‘governor’, in relation to a contracted out prison, means the director of the prison
‘inform’ means inform in writing
‘legal representative’, in relation to a defendant, means any authorised advocate or authorised litigator (as defined by section 119(1) of the Courts and Legal Services Act 1990 ) acting for the defendant in connection with any proceedings for the sexual offence in question
‘photograph’ and ‘pseudo-photograph’ shall be construed in accordance with section 7(4) and (7) of the Protection of Children Act 1978
‘prison’ means any prison, young offender institution or remand centre which is under the general superintendence of, or is provided by, the Secretary of State under the Prison Act 1952 , including a contracted out prison
‘proceedings’ means (subject to subsection (2)) criminal proceedings
‘the prosecutor’, in relation to any proceedings for a sexual offence, means any person acting as prosecutor (whether an individual or a body)
‘relevant proceedings’, in relation to any material which has been disclosed by the prosecutor under this Act, means any proceedings for the purposes of which it has been so disclosed or any further proceedings for the sexual offence in question
‘sexual offence’ means one of the offences listed in the Schedule to this Act.
(2) For the purposes of this Act references to proceedings for a sexual offence include references to—
(a) any appeal or application for leave to appeal brought or made by or in relation to a defendant in such proceedings
(b) any application made to the Criminal Cases Review Commission for the reference under section 9 or 11 of the Criminal Appeal Act 1995 of any conviction, verdict, finding or sentence recorded or imposed in relation to any such defendant and
(c) any petition to the Secretary of State requesting him to recommend the exercise of Her Majesty's prerogative of mercy in relation to any such defendant.
(3) In this Act, in the context of the prosecutor giving a copy of any material to any person—
(a) references to the prosecutor include references to a person acting on behalf of the prosecutor and
(b) where any such copy falls to be given to the defendant's legal representative, references to the defendant's legal representative include references to a person acting on behalf of the defendant's legal representative.
Regulation of disclosures to defendant
3 Regulation of disclosures by prosecutor.
(1) Where, in connection with any proceedings for a sexual offence, any statement or other material falling within any of paragraphs (a) to (c) of section 1(1) would (apart from this section) fall to be disclosed by the prosecutor to the defendant—
(a) the prosecutor shall not disclose that material to the defendant and
(b) it shall instead be disclosed under this Act in accordance with whichever of subsections (2) and (3) below is applicable.
(2) If—
(a) the defendant has a legal representative, and
(b) the defendant's legal representative gives the prosecutor the undertaking required by section 4 (disclosure to defendant's legal representative),
the prosecutor shall disclose the material in question by giving a copy of it to the defendant's legal representative.
(3) If subsection (2) is not applicable, the prosecutor shall disclose the material in question by giving a copy of it to the appropriate person for the purposes of section 5 (disclosure to unrepresented defendant) in order for that person to show that copy to the defendant under that section.
(4) Where under this Act a copy of any material falls to be given to any person by the prosecutor, any such copy—
(a) may be in such form as the prosecutor thinks fit, and
(b) where the material consists of information which has been recorded in any form, need not be in the same form as that in which the information has already been recorded.
(5) Once a copy of any material is given to any person under this Act by the prosecutor, the copy shall (in accordance with section 1(1)) be protected material for the purposes of this Act.
4 Disclosure to defendant's legal representative.
(1) For the purposes of this Act the undertaking which a defendant's legal representative is required to give in relation to any protected material given to him under this Act is an undertaking by him to discharge the obligations set out in subsections (2) to (7).
(2) He must take reasonable steps to ensure—
(a) that the protected material, or any copy of it, is only shown to the defendant in circumstances where it is possible to exercise adequate supervision to prevent the defendant retaining possession of the material or copy or making a copy of it, and
(b) that the protected material is not shown and no copy of it is given, and its contents are not otherwise revealed, to any person other than the defendant, except so far as it appears to him necessary to show the material or give a copy of it to any such person—
(i) in connection with any relevant proceedings, or
(ii) for the purposes of any assessment or treatment of the defendant (whether before or after conviction).
(3) He must inform the defendant—
(a) that the protected material is such material for the purposes of this Act,
(b) that the defendant can only inspect that material, or any copy of it, in circumstances such as are described in subsection (2)(a), and
(c) that it would be an offence for the defendant—
(i) to have that material, or any copy of it, in his possession otherwise than while inspecting it or the copy in such circumstances, or
(ii) to give that material or any copy of it, or otherwise reveal its contents, to any other person.
(4) He must, where the protected material or a copy of it has been shown or given in accordance with subsection (2)(b)(i) or (ii) to a person other than the defendant, inform that person—
(a) that that person must not give any copy of that material, or otherwise reveal its contents—
(i) to any other person other...
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