The Crown Office in Edinburgh has issued a stinging reprimand to Dundee Sheriff Richard Davidson after he criticised their handling of a court case, labelling the language he used as ”insulting” and ”unprofessional.”
Sheriff Davidson has also been told the decisions on how criminal cases are handled are a matter for the procurator fiscal and not the court after he labelled an unknown employee in the fiscal’s office a ”clown”.
The row began at the sheriff court on Tuesday when a case against a serial housebreaker, who stole tens of thousands of pounds worth of property, including two cars, was reduced from petition to a summary complaint.
Sheriff Davidson said the decision was ”absurd and completely unsatisfactory” given the nature of 25-year-old Richard Rattray’s crime, breaking into two houses and stealing the cars, one of which was destroyed by fire.
He also urged the victims to express their disappointment to the Crown after pointing out in court that he could only jail Rattray for nine months instead of the 33 months he could have imposed had it been on indictment.
He said the decision had been made by ”some clown in the procurator fiscal’s office.”
Asked for a response by The Courier on Tuesday, the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service said they could not comment until they were in full possession of the facts.
Now a spokesman has said: ”COPFS absolutely rejects both the sheriff’s criticism and the insulting, unprofessional language used by him. Decisions on the forum of criminal cases are properly for the procurator fiscal, as independent public prosecutor, and not the court.
”The decision to prosecute this case on summary complaint was taken by the procurator fiscal after careful consideration of all of the facts and circumstances of the case, the accused and previous sentences imposed by the court.”