A content analysis of Supreme Court rulings on cases in violation of the Speedy Trial Act from 2013-2018

Abstract

The right of the accused to a speedy trial and to a speedy disposition of the case against him was designed to prevent the oppression of the citizen by holding criminal prosecution suspended over him for an indefinite time, and to prevent delays in the administration of justice by mandating the courts to proceed with reasonable dispatch in the trial of criminal cases. This content analysis was conducted to analyze the common rights of the accused which were violated under the speedy trial, the common reasons of such violations and what are the Supreme Court rulings upon those certain types of violations and in order to protect the constitutional right of the accused. The researcher gathered and based her study in the cases decided by the Supreme Court from the year 2013 up to 2018. As the researcher studied and reviewed cases decided by the Supreme Court, the researcher noted the cases which are covered by the speedy trial act, and the reason of the dismissal, acquittal or conviction thereof. And among those results gathered, the researcher was able to identify the most or common violation committed under the speedy trial act. This paper surveyed the different mechanisms in place to ensure that justice is efficiently rendered in this country and in case of failure to do so, the different safeguard mechanisms to address the effects of the violation of a party’s right to have speedy justice. The researcher further concluded that considering that there are so many factors which affects the delivery of a speedy trial, whether it is man-made or not, the key solution is that each of the party necessary for the speedy disposition of the case must participate diligently and effectively in order to avoid such miscarriage of justice.