Can anyone explain this to me? - (Criminal law)

[DowntonAbbess]

There was a report in the local paper yesterday (so this is public knowledge) that someone, who is already serving time at her Majesty?s pleasure for sexual abuse of minors has been charged with 75 counts of similar abuse plus 2 counts of rape. The case is going to court in the new year. However, this case will only look at 35 charges. Can anyone explain to me why this is, and why they?re not going to tackle everything? Is it because there are so many?

I have a personal interest in the case (I was a witness in the last trial) and I?d like to understand what?s happening here.

TIA

[LadyMaryCreepyCrawley]

It's possible that the witnesses for the other counts don't wish to go to court, or there's not enough evidence for these.

[MaudTheGardenTheBlackBatNight]

The others may be "taken into consideration".

[DowntonAbbess]

Ah ok. Many, many thanks.

[ZillionChocolate]

A 75 count indictment is unmanageably large. Can you imagine how difficult it would be for a juror to cope with giving proper consideration to 75 individual incidents.

It tends to be in historic sex cases that the same sort of thing is alleged to have happened repeatedly. It is better for the Prosecution to put their case in a way that a jury can understand; they will bear in mind the importance of the Judge's sentencing options.

Sometimes cases are split into mutiple indictments and there will be separate trials.