Blevins v. State

Hall, Judge.

A speedy trial is a fundamental constitutional right (Code §§ 2-105, 1-806, 1-815), not a privilege; it has existed in England from the time of the Magna Carta. 21 Am. Jur. 2d 278, 279, § 241; 22A CJS 20, § 467(2). “The right to a speedy trial is intended to avoid oppression and prevent delay by imposing on the courts and on the prosecution an obligation to proceed with reasonable dispatch. It has been said that the basic policy underlying the constitutional guaranty and the statutes enacted to implement it is to protect the accused from having criminal charges pending against him…