Northern Ireland Troubles (Legacy and Reconciliation) Act 2023

Prohibition of grant of immunity: conviction or ongoing prosecution

This adran has no associated Nodiadau Esboniadol

3(1)A grant of immunity for an identified possible offence is prohibited if—

(a)P has a conviction for the identified possible offence,

(b)P is being prosecuted for the identified possible offence, or

(c)P is being prosecuted for any other offence (whether or not a Troubles-related offence), and the immunity requests panel is satisfied that granting P immunity from prosecution for the identified possible offence would risk having, or would have, a prejudicial effect on that prosecution.

(2)For the purposes of this paragraph—

(a)P is “being prosecuted for” an offence if a public prosecution of P for the offence has begun and is continuing;

(b)a “public prosecution” means any prosecution other than a private prosecution;

(c)a public prosecution of P for an offence “has begun” if a prosecutor has made the decision to prosecute P for that offence;

(d)the circumstances in which a public prosecution of P is to be regarded as continuing include circumstances where the trial which forms part of the prosecution ends without P being convicted or acquitted or any other verdict being given and either—

(i)the period for the prosecution to seek a retrial is continuing (without a retrial having been sought), or

(ii)the prosecution have sought a retrial;

(e)the circumstances in which a public prosecution of P is to be regarded as not continuing include—

(i)circumstances where the trial which forms part of the prosecution ends with P being convicted or acquitted or with another verdict being given, and

(ii)circumstances where the trial ends without P being convicted or acquitted or any other verdict being given and the period for the prosecution to seek a retrial ends without a retrial having been sought.