South Australian Consolidated Acts

JURIES ACT 1927 - SECT 7

7—Trial without jury

        (1)         Subject to this section, where, in a criminal trial before the Supreme Court or the District Court—

            (a)         the accused elects, in accordance with the rules of court, to be tried by the judge alone; and

            (b)         the presiding judge is satisfied that the accused, before making the election, sought and received advice in relation to the election from a legal practitioner,

the trial will proceed without a jury.

        (2)         No election may be made under subsection (1) where the accused is charged with a minor indictable offence and has elected to be tried in the District Court.

        (3)         Where two or more persons are jointly charged, no election may be made under subsection (1) unless all of those persons concur in the election.

        (4)         If a criminal trial proceeds without a jury under this section, the judge may make any decision that could have been made by a jury and such a decision will, for all purposes, have the same effect as a verdict of a jury.