Section 124:
consolidated text (as at 2017). juris shows the text as it was consolidated; it does not confirm that this is the law in force today.
124. Stay of proceedings – Delay between commission of crime and prosecution—In 1991 the appellant, who had just returned to Mauritius after an
8 year absence, was arrested and charged in relation to a crime allegedly
committed in 1983. The case was heard in 1992 and the appellant sought a
stay of proceedings on the ground that he had not received a fair trial since
he had not been tried within a reasonable time. The trial Court found that the
appellant had left the country and was therefore partly responsible for the
delay. The appellant was convicted, and appealed.
HELD in relation to conduct which will be at issue in the trial the Judge
must consider the prosecution’s case as part of the factual background
against which the alleged delay has to be considered. Dahall v State (1993).