ABSTRACT
In his review of the criminal justice system in England and Wales, Lord Justice Auld suggested that the use of the expression ‘Criminal Justice System’ was misleading since there is no ‘system’ worthy of the name, only a criminal justice ‘process’ to which contribution is made by a number of different government departments and agencies, and other organisations (Auld 2001). The same comments could also be used in the Scottish context, where there is no unitary or consistent organisational structure of the justice system. The word ‘system’ is suggestive of a collective entity, serving a common purpose, whose many elements co-operate and work together. However, in Scotland, criminal justice is a public service delivered by a mixture of national and local organisations, central and local government bodies, non-departmental bodies and charitable organisations. These providers are only loosely related to one another and each has its own differing perspectives, views and policies. In fact, it has been suggested that perhaps the only real common links within the criminal justice system are crime and criminals (Young 1997).
