The Supreme Court, as part of the Criminal Case Management Programme, is introducing an initiative called “Sentence Reduction Days”.

The initiative, according to a release from the Court Management Services yesterday, is aimed at providing opportunities for accused people who are guilty and wish to plead guilty on specific days, where significant discounts in sentences would be granted.The release said Sentence Reduction Days will also assist in reducing the significant inventory of cases before the Circuit Courts.The first such designated day is scheduled for May 22, 2017, and applies to all accused people, in custody or on bail, who have their cases before the Home Circuit Courts and the Corporate Area Gun Court, the release continued.“An accused person, who wishes to avail himself/herself of this measure, must notify the Home Circuit Criminal Registry or the Gun Court Registry in writing, on or before May 15, 2017, to benefit from this initiative,” the release said.Also, the release said all accused people entering a guilty plea on Sentence Reduction Day, will be treated as if they had pleaded guilty on the first relevant date they were brought before the courts.The Legal Aid Council will provide representation for any accused person who does not have an attorney-at-law previously assigned to represent them.“’Sentence Reduction Days’ allow accused persons who have pleaded guilty to benefit from the sentencing policy set out in Part 1A of the Criminal Justice (Administration) Act. The initiative will be adapted for implementation in other Circuit Courts and the Western Regional Gun Court,“ the release said.Criminal case management is a broad term describing a judge-driven process to ensure that pre-trial issues are dealt with effectively, thus resulting in expeditious and fair trials.