(1)F1[F2 The Director of Public Prosecutions for Northern Ireland] shall obey any direction given to him by an election court with respect to the prosecution by him of offenders, and if it appears to him that any person who has not received a certificate of indemnity has been guilty of a corrupt or illegal practice, he shall, without any such direction, prosecute that person for that offence before the election court, or if he thinks it expedient in the interests of justice, before any other competent court.
(2)Where a person prosecuted before an election court appears before the court, the court shall proceed to try him summarily unless the court thinks it expedient in the interests of justice that he should be tried before some other court:
Provided that in the case of a corrupt practice, the court before proceeding to try him summarily shall give him the option of being tried by a jury.
(3)The Summary Jurisdiction Acts shall, so far as is consistent with the tenor thereof, apply to the prosecution of an offence summarily before an election court:
Provided that no appeal shall lie against a conviction by an election court.
(4)Where—
(a)the person prosecuted does not appear before the court; or
(b)the court thinks it expedient in the interests of justice that he should be tried before some other court; or
(c)the person prosecuted elects under sub-section (2) to be tried by a jury;
and the court is of opinion that the evidence is sufficient to put that person upon his trial for the offence, the court shall order that person to be prosecuted either on indictment or before a court of summary jurisdiction, as the case may require, for the offence and thereupon shall proceed as directed by sub-section (5), sub-section (6), sub-section (7) or sub-section (8):
Provided that, except where the accused has elected to be tried by a jury, a corrupt practice shall not for the purposes of the following provisions of this section be deemed to be an indictable offence if the election court think that it should be prosecuted summarily.
(5)The election court may name the court before whom the person is to be prosecuted and for all purposes preliminary to and of and incidental to the prosecution the offence shall be deemed to have been committed within the jurisdiction of the court so named.
(6)If the accused is present before the court and the offence is an indictable offence, the enactments relating to charges before justices against persons for indictable offences shall, so far as is consistent with the tenor thereof, apply and the court shall commit him for trial.
(7)If the accused is present before the court and the offence is not an indictable offence, the election court shall order him to be brought before the court of summary jurisdiction before whom he is to be prosecuted or cause him to give bail to appear before that court of summary jurisdiction.
(8)If the accused is not present before the court, the court shall as circumstances require issue a summons for his attendance, or a warrant to apprehend him and bring him before a court of summary jurisdiction.
(9)The court of summary jurisdiction before whom he attends or is brought shall—
(a)if the offence is an indictable offence, on proof only of the summons or warrant and the identity of the accused, commit him for trial; and
(b)if the offence is not an indictable offence, proceed to hear the case or, if the court of summary jurisdiction is not the court before whom he is directed to be prosecuted, order him to be brought before that court.
[F3(10)This section shall not apply to electoral misdemeanours committed or alleged to have been committed at a local election.]