Listen
Criminal appeal statistics 2008-09
03/11/2009
Figures released today by Scotland's Chief Statistician show that a total of 2,191 criminal appeals against conviction and/or sentence were concluded in 2008-09. This represents a decrease of 3 per cent compared with 2007-08 and is 36 per cent lower than the equivalent figure in 1999-00.
Other main findings include:
- Of the 2,191 appeals concluded in 2008-09, 78 per cent related to sentence only
- The average duration of concluded criminal appeals increased by 7 per cent (from 151 to 162 days) between 2007-08 and 2008-09
- The average duration of concluded Solemn conviction appeals increased from 382 to 513 days, the highest figure recorded in the past ten years and an increase of 34 per cent from 2007-08
- The majority (79 per cent) of appeals concluded in 2008-09 were concluded within six months
- The total of 2,191 concluded appeals in 2008-09 was equivalent to 2 per cent of the total number of persons with a charge proved in criminal proceedings in 2007-08
- Over half (53 per cent) of the total number of appeals concluded in 2008-09 were refused at the sift stage or abandoned. This is a decrease of 8 percentage points from 2007-08