Intent to prosecute

[Nceen]

Hi my son as recieved letter from court with intent to prosecute for not having the correct ticket for his journey.
He only had a ticket for part of the journey.
However the details on the paper work have the wrong date of birth and states that he is over 18.

How do I rectify this and can help be prosecuted if he is under 18.

 

[gray1404]

Please can you provide the full journey details, which train company it is and what tickets were held.

A full account of the event would be very helpful.

 

[Salesy]

Hi my son as recieved letter from court with intent to prosecute for not having the correct ticket for his journey.
He only had a ticket for part of the journey.
However the details on the paper work have the wrong date of birth and states that he is over 18.

How do I rectify this and can help be prosecuted if he is under 18.

I'm not qualified to give legal advice (for which you should contact the CAB or a solicitor) but my understanding is that prosecutors may amend details on a charge or summons as long as it is not of a material detriment to the defendant.

The age of criminal responsibility in England and Wales is 10 years old (12 in Scotland), therefore anyone of that age or above can be prosecuted.

 

[Nceen]

Please can you provide the full journey details, which train company it is and what tickets were held.

A full account of the event would be very helpful.

My son was stopped near route near Hendon were he had a ticket for leagrave to st Albans. He reports that he missed his stop. The revenue officers notes were signed by my son who obviously did not check the details because it states aged over 18 in which my son is not.

 

[mikeg]

What salesy has said is correct but my understanding is that it is a bit of a faff to bring private prosecutions against youths/children. Again someone with more legal expertise will be better able to advise and there are a few on here who could advise on the prospects of the prosecution proceeding.

 

[Stigy]

They can prosecute an under 18 year old, however they'd need to go through the youth system so this is highly unlikely. It depends as well how far under 18 he was at the time of the offence. Anybody under 17 for example, unless there's many aggravating factors involved, would be highly unlikely to be prosecuted.

 

[gray1404]

The letter that your son has received, what exactly does it say and what does it ask for? Is it from the train company or the court?

 

[Fare-Cop]

Hi my son as recieved letter from court with intent to prosecute for not having the correct ticket for his journey.
He only had a ticket for part of the journey.
However the details on the paper work have the wrong date of birth and states that he is over 18.

How do I rectify this and can help be prosecuted if he is under 18.

Yes, he can be prosecuted if an offence is evident. As Salesy already correctly identified, the age of criminal responsibility in England is 10 years, but it is not going to be used to deal with a 10 year old in relation to travelling without a correct rail ticket.

The point made by Stigy about 17 year olds is important though.

To bring action in a Magistrates Court the offender would have to be 18 years of age on the date that the plea is heard by the Court. Technically therefore, a person who was 17 years and 7 months old at the time of any offence could be summonsed to a Magistrates Court hearing a week or two after their 18th birthday. That is extremely unlikely to happen in my view, unless a very serious offence is evident and for minor matters, this is likely to be considered an 'abuse of process'.

The company can use Youth Court prosecutions, but rarely do and certainly not for matters such as described by you unless the alleged offender has a history of continuous offending.

If your son is in fact over 17 years of age I'd help him to write and explain what happened in his own words as he was the person there. He should correct the date of birth, sign and date the letter and send it by signed for post. You can include in the envelope a note as an interested parent/third party on a separate sheet of paper if you wish.

IF you don't mind a constructive suggestion, in my long experience of dealing with this sort of thing, letters received in this format tend to get a much more sympathetic and understanding reaction than the more frequent bullish rants that parents / guardians are prone to writing.

If in fact, your son held an invalid ticket and an inspector has genuine belief that an offence is evident, hence the report, the process explained above will allow for this to be sorted out quickly by administrative process rather than Court action.

 

[Nceen]

Yes, he can be prosecuted if an offence is evident. As Salesy already correctly identified, the age of criminal responsibility in England is 10 years, but it is not going to be used to deal with a 10 year old in relation to travelling without a correct rail ticket.

The point made by Stigy about 17 year olds is important though.

To bring action in a Magistrates Court the offender would have to be 18 years of age on the date that the plea is heard by the Court. Technically therefore, a person who was 17 years and 7 months old at the time of any offence could be summonsed to a Magistrates Court hearing a week or two after their 18th birthday. That is extremely unlikely to happen in my view, unless a very serious offence is evident and for minor matters, this is likely to be considered an 'abuse of process'.

The company can use Youth Court prosecutions, but rarely do and certainly not for matters such as described by you unless the alleged offender has a history of continuous offending.

If your son is in fact over 17 years of age I'd help him to write and explain what happened in his own words as he was the person there. He should correct the date of birth, sign and date the letter and send it by signed for post. You can include in the envelope a note as an interested parent/third party on a separate sheet of paper if you wish.

IF you don't mind a constructive suggestion, in my long experience of dealing with this sort of thing, letters received in this format tend to get a much more sympathetic and understanding reaction than the more frequent bullish rants that parents / guardians are prone to writing.

If in fact, your son held an invalid ticket and an inspector has genuine belief that an offence is evident, hence the report, the process explained above will allow for this to be sorted out quickly by administrative process rather than Court action.

My son has already written a letter in which they replied the will take the matter further. In which he then received the summons (he actually has two different summons!) I have tried to call but have not been able to get through.

I have now written a basic polite letter about the incorrect date of birth, my son's remorse and offered to pay any outstanding fee.

 

[gray1404]

My son has already written a letter in which they replied the will take the matter further. In which he then received the summons (he actually has two different summons!) I have tried to call but have not been able to get through.

I have now written a basic polite letter about the incorrect date of birth, my son's remorse and offered to pay any outstanding fee.

This is very concerning. Where they made aware of the incorrect date of birth in the letter your son sent to them?

Is it worth contacting the court to advise them of the mistake and that the matter should not proceed in the adult courts?