By: Sanchi Hingorani (2nd year law student at Christ (deemed to be university) Delhi NCR Campus
In India the criminal justice system is a system wherein individuals who have been accused of breaching the law get a chance for fair trial, maintaining law and order in the country. There are mainly three components mainly, the police, the judiciary and correctional system. This article is based on how technology can help and make India’s criminal justice system more efficient in regards with the recent era. The article covers subtopics like benefits provided by the integration of technology into the system and a view on e-courts and online filling.
Tech devices which have already helped the system be more efficient:
The first and foremost technology device which has already helped the criminal justice system is the GPS, this device is generally used by police officers to determine the location of a particular individual or to get the fastest route for a chase. Digital video recording is another device which has made the police more efficient, for giving out speeding tickets or noting down the license plate number to catch a suspect.
Moreover, I believe that integration of technology has reduced the delay and in providing justice and the number of unheard cases a court has, through video conferencing this problem is easily resolved, when a witness is not able to be present in the court the court has an option to take him/her up on a video conference, this makes the court more efficient.
In addition to this, according to research the forensic solutions have improved and that is due to the integration of technology in the justice system., more samples can be stored online and various types of tests can be relied upon for the same.
How tech improves transparency and accountability:
Technology has made it easier for the evidence to be stored and be accessed wherever needed, as information is now published online maximum number of people can view it and view any court proceeding or judgment they want, making the justice system more transparent. Furthermore, technologies like face recognition make it simple for the law enforcement to find the suspect and thus make the legal system more transparent.
Potential of E-Courts for streamlining the criminal justice system
The idea of E-Courts emerged when the E-Courts mission project was formulated in India by committee which was constituted by the chief justice of India to promote computerization of the judiciary system in India. Till date in India there have been three phases for the initiation of this project.
In my view, E-Courts will reduce the paper work and might assist in decreasing the backlog of the cases which the court has. In addition to this, the same can reduce the cost of appearing for a hearing as now bail can be filed online, online judgments will be available and people can join as a witness through video conferences.
The use of E-Courts can also improve communication as notice can be serviced online via email and usage of E-Courts will give lawyers, judges and the other staff to manage the court more efficiently as they will have more resources for the same.
Impact on stakeholders:
For clients and users, the online legal processes are more cost efficient as they won’t need incur the cost of appearing for a hearing or a judgment. Moreover, clients may feel more confident in taking legal actions as the procedure is online it will not seem as a complex procedure.
For community organizations, they can gain more knowledge about the subjects and improve their legal management and service delivery by being more efficient and effectively engage with stakeholders. In addition to this, online tools can help save time and money, improve mental wellbeing as well.
For legal professionals, online services like AI automate the repetitive tasks and thus the professionals can focus on the higher skill tasks and it allows them to update the case progress more quickly. It can also improve communication service for the legal professionals, as they can be available for chats.
The last but not the least for regulatory bodies and policy makers, more data can be acquired as evidence and policies that will benefit the society. Furthermore, they can also measure outcomes more effectively.
Impact on legal education and training:
Technology also allows for the legal professionals to continue their training with their work side by side. Moreover, there are online webinars now to get E-Certificates for various courses which expands the knowledge of the individual. It also enhances opportunities for multi-tasking like teaching and being a mentor for different courses.
Conclusion:
I believe that this is an important legal contemporary topic which should be discussed more often so that technology is integrated more into the justice system of India. The role of technology in the criminal justice system provides more transparency to the system and more accountability.
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