A defendant (the accused) who has been committed for trial before a jury in the District Court or the Supreme Court may have to wait some time after their arraignment before the trial takes place.

If witnesses gave evidence at a committal hearing, it is recorded and typed up in documents called depositions. A copy of these depositions is available from the clerk of the court for the accused to use at the trial [Criminal Procedure Act 1921 (SA) s 134 ].

The defendant is entitled to know if the prosecution intends to call witnesses at the trial who were not called at the committal hearing or if the charges are to be changed. In either case:

Sometimes the accused calls a witness, or presents evidence to show that they could not have committed the crime because they were not at the scene of the crime but were somewhere else (alibi evidence). Notice of the accused's intention to submit such evidence must be filed with the court at the same time the defence case statement is filed, and must be served on the DPP [Criminal Procedure Act 1921 (SA) s 124].