NCTJ Court Reporting Practice Exam

When does a case cease to be active?

1. The arrested person is released without charge

2. No arrest is made within 12 months

3. The case is discontinued

4. All of the above

The correct answer is: All of the above

A case ceases to be active when any of the given circumstances occur because they all signify the end of prosecution activities regarding that case. When an arrested person is released without charge, it indicates that the authorities have decided not to pursue the case any further based on the current available evidence, effectively putting an end to the case's active status. If no arrest is made within a 12-month period, this may imply that there has been no significant progress in investigating or prosecuting the case, leading to its conclusion as inactive according to legal standards. Additionally, if a case is discontinued, it represents an outright decision by the prosecution to end the legal action against the accused, thus rendering the case inactive. Since all these scenarios independently mark the cessation of an active case, the inclusion of 'all of the above' as a choice correctly reflects that any of these events would result in a case no longer being considered active.