Stuart appears daily on behalf of defendants and the CPS in Crown Courts across the North Eastern Circuit.
Stuart is a Grade 3 prosecutor and was previously employed by the CPS where he gained broad experience while working in their Crown Court, RASSO and Magistrates Court units.
Crown Court & appeals
Crown Court
R v. RF (2023): Defended an individual charged with ABH and made a successful application to dismiss the charge on the basis of the tenuous nature of the prosecution evidence.
R v. KB (2023): Prosecuted the trial of a defendant who was convicted of using a machete to commit the offence of (s.18) wounding with intent to cause grievous bodily harm. He received a 6-year sentence. Reported in the Rotherham Advertiser.
R v. AD & others (2023): Defended at trial an individual charged with inflicting Grievous Bodily Harm. Following the cross examination of the complainant, successful submissions were made to the CPS that they should not continue this prosecution and the case was dropped against the defendant.
R v. JA & others (2023): Defended in a day-long sentence for conspiracy to supply Class A drugs. The prosecution submitted this case should have an 11 year starting point for sentence. Following submissions by Mr Bell and other defence counsel regarding the sentencing guidelines and mitigation, the Learned Judge took a starting point much lower than the one submitted by the prosecution, resulting in a 4.5 year sentence. Reported in the Derbyshire Times.
R v. LB (2023): Prosecuted the trial of a defendant who was charged with domestic abuse offences including assault occasioning Actual Bodily Harm and witness intimidation. The defendant was convicted following a trial and received a 5-year prison sentence alongside a 10-year restraining order. Reported in the Sheffield Star.
R v. BT (2023): Prosecuted for trial in a case involving a series of domestic violence which on one occasion caused grievous bodily harm. The defendant pleaded guilty on the day of trial and received a 4.5-year prison sentence alongside a 1- year restraining order. Reported in the Sheffield Star.
R v. HD (2023): Instructed by the defence for trial on charges of possession with intent to supply Class A drugs on two separate occasions. The case resolved with guilty pleas.
R v. BC (2023): Defended at sentence in a serious dangerous driving case which involved a lengthy police chase and damage caused to other vehicles. Successful mitigation led to the defendant receiving a suspended sentence rather than immediate custody.
R v JJ (2022): Defended at trial on charges of witness intimidation and assault. Following cross examination of the complainant regarding their contradictory evidence, a successful submission of no case to answer was made for both charges, leading to not guilty verdicts being directed by the judge.
R v NT (2022): Prosecuted a knife-point robbery and aggravated taking of a vehicle without consent. The defendant was found guilty of both counts after a trial. He received a 6-year sentence.
R v BB (2022): Instructed as trial counsel to represent the prosecution in a trial involving the possession of an offensive weapon. The prosecution case involved identification evidence from CCTV footage. A guilty verdict was returned.
R v NN (2022): Instructed as trial counsel to represent the prosecution on an eight-count indictment which included conspiracy to steal motor vehicles from a secure compound. The value of the stolen vehicles was over £100,000. The case was resolved by guilty pleas.
