Are low-level shop thefts subject to the six-month prosecution time limit?
The recent case of Jobson v DPP [2025] EWHC 1385 (Admin) settles the issue regarding low-level thefts being time-barred or not.
Briefly, by way of postal requisition, Jobson was charged with theft of meat valued at £88, more than six months post the alleged offence. At the Magistrates’ Court, Jobson pleaded guilty and was sentenced to a conditional discharge.
Jobson’s lawyers subsequently sought to set-aside her earlier guilty plea in accordance with s.142 of the Magistrates’ Courts Act 1980 (MCA 1980), submitting that the prosecution was time-barred, given that the offence was summary-only.
Section 22A of the MCA 1980 provides that shop thefts where the value of the goods stolen is £200 or less must be tried summarily, unless of course the defendant exercises their right to elect jury trial.
The High Court referred to and affirmed the Divisional Court’s ruling in Candlish v DPP [2022] EWHC 842 (Admin).
Applying Candish, the appeal in Jobson failed.
Note – All thefts remain either-way offences, until the first appearance before a Magistrates’ Court, where the value of the theft is determined.
The six-month prosecution time limit under section 127 of the MCA 1980 does not, therefore, apply until deemed ‘summary-only’ at the first appearance and not before.
For further details:
Jobson v Director of Public Prosecutions [2025] EWHC 1385 (Admin) (05 June 2025)