End snail justice’ says judge

The Westcountry s top judge has called for an end to snail justice .

The Westcountry's top judge has called for an end to "snail justice".

At Exeter Crown Court, Judge Graham Cottle said the length of time to bring cases to sentence or trial was "unreasonable" .

Some cases are taking more than a year from the time of arrest to when the defendant is finally dealt with.

"There has to be swifter resolution of cases and an end to snail justice - and that is what is going to happen," said Judge Cottle.

He was dealing with a robbery case, where the offence was committed in April and the defendant was sentenced last week.

"People wanting to be dealt with should not have to wait for a ridiculous length of time. Their cases should be heard at the earliest opportunity," said Judge Cottle. "Recent cases have shown there is a need to return to fast tracking of preliminary hearings so those wishing to plead guilty can do so and be dealt with.