Ministers admitted there was not enough support in the Scottish parliament to move ahead with the proposal, which had been criticised by lawyers and judges.
A proposal to experiment with judge-only trials for cases of rape and attempted rape has been cancelled by the Scottish government. Scottish Justice Secretary Angela Constance said on Thursday there was 'not enough cross-party support' to proceed with the pilot scheme. She said she was acting after hearing the thoughts of the cross-party Criminal Justice Committee and a wide range of other views.
In England and Wales, a judge in Crown Court rape and attempted rape trials asks juries to reach a unanimous verdict - that means, they should all agree on whether a defendant is 'guilty' or 'not guilty'.
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