Court cases, orders and sentencing

Introduction

This guide has information for people who are charged with an offence and have to go to a criminal court.

Criminal courts in the Northern Territory (NT) are:

  • Local Court -  held in Darwin, Alice Springs, Katherine, Tennant Creek and bush courts in remote areas.
  • Supreme Court - held in Darwin and Alice Springs.

Find out more information on types of courts and their roles.


Going to court

The judge sits on the bench at the front of the courtroom, and lawyers sit facing them at a table called the bar.

Members of the public and family can sit in the chairs behind the lawyers. Anyone can sit in the courtroom and listen to the evidence.

In some cases, the judge may ask people to leave the courtroom and stop some evidence from being published in the media. This is called a closed court.

When inside the court you should do all of the following:

  • bow to the magistrate or judge when entering and leaving a courtroom
  • enter and leave the courtroom quietly
  • not talk, eat or chew gum
  • turn off your mobile phone
  • remove your sunglasses and/or hat.

Find out more information about courtroom rules.


Types of court cases

The types of cases you may face in a criminal court vary depending if you’re in the Local Court or Supreme Court.

Cases heard in the Local Court

Mention

This is where the lawyers and judge speak briefly about what kind of case you should have.

Bail application

The lawyer for the offender asks the judge to release you from prison under supervision or restrictions.

The judge may agree and release you under some restrictions.

These can include:

  • a curfew
  • reporting to your local police station on a regular basis
  • taking part in a program.

The judge may also not allow this to happen and you may have to stay in custody until your next court date.

Case management inquiry

This involves a discussion between the lawyers and the judge about where the case is up to. They then set another day for you to come to court again.

Hearing

This is when you don’t want to plead guilty to an offence. Witnesses come to court and answer questions about the incident.

A hearing can run for several days or more than a week.

The judge will then decide at the end of the hearing whether you are guilty or not.

If you are found guilty by the judge, you will then be sentenced.

Find out more about court orders and sentencing.

Hand-up committal

This is when the judge, the prosecutor and your lawyer agree that the type of crime you have been involved in is too serious to be heard in the Local Court.

This is a brief hearing and your case is transferred to the Supreme Court.

Committal hearing

This is when the prosecutor has asked the judge to consider sending you to the Supreme Court because you have been involved in a serious crime.

Witnesses may come to court and answer questions about the incident.

If a judge thinks you committed a serious crime, they may order you to go to the Supreme Court.

Plea

This is when you have agreed to plead guilty to an offence. The charges will be read out and you will have to answer ‘guilty’.

You will then be given a sentence by the judge.

Cases heard in The Supreme Court

The different types of cases you may face in the Supreme Court are listed below.

Mention

This is where the lawyers and judge speak briefly about what kind of case you should have.

Bail application

Your lawyer asks the judge to release you from the remand section of the prison under supervision or restrictions. The judge may agree and release you under some restrictions.

These can include any of the following:

  • a curfew
  • reporting to your local police station on a regular basis
  • taking part in a program.

The judge may also not allow this to happen and you will have to stay in the remand section of a prison until their next court date.

Find out more information on being granted bail.

Jury trial

This is when a person's case is heard in front of a judge and group of people from the community – known as a jury.

The prosecutor will tell the court about the incident you were allegedly involved in. Your lawyer will tell the court why you should not be held responsible for the incident.

The jury will then say whether they think you are guilty or not guilty. This called a verdict.

If the jury says you are guilty, the judge will then give you a sentence. This may be done on another day.

If the jury says you are not guilty, you are free to go.

Read more about court orders and sentences.

Plea

This is when you have agreed to plead guilty to an offence. The charges will be read out and you will have to answer ‘guilty’.

You will then be given a sentence by the judge.


Court orders and sentencing

A court order or sentence is the punishment given to you by a judge if a court decides you are guilty of a crime.

You can be given either:

Find out more information on sentencing and community work.

Find out more information on going to prison.

What your sentence depends on

Your sentence will depend on many different factors.

These can include any of the following:

  • the seriousness of the crime
  • whether you have history of similar crimes
  • if you pleaded guilty or not guilty.

Young people are treated differently by the courts.

Find out more information on young people in court.


Serving your sentence outside of prison

This is known as a non-custodial sentence. There are different types of sentences that can be served outside of a prison.

Community-based orders

A community based order is a court order which says all offenders will be supervised by a probation and parole officer - and they are required to participate in programs, treatment or training and possibly unpaid community work.

Find out more about community based orders.


Serving your sentence in prison

This is also known as a custodial sentence or imprisonment. The court decides when you can apply for parole.

A prison term begins on the day you are sentenced. If you have already spent time in prison before you were sentenced for this crime, this may be backdated.

This means this time is counted in your overall sentence time.

Time in prison

The time you spend in prison depends on the seriousness of the crime, and the maximum penalty you can be given for that crime under the law.

Prisoners must apply for parole. The Parole Board decides whether you will be granted parole.

Suspended sentence

You can be given a fully suspended or partly suspended sentence.

This means part or all of the time you were sentenced to in prison can be served outside of the prison under supervision and certain conditions.

These conditions can include any of the following:

If you break any of these conditions you may have to go to prison and serve some, or all, of the suspended time of your prison sentence.