At any stage of a trial before the Court before the return of the verdict, the prosecution may inform the Court that it will not further prosecute the accused upon the charge. All proceedings on the charge against the accused are then stayed, and he or she is discharged. The prosecution may act in this manner for various reasons; for example, if it no longer believes that the accused committed the offence, if it feels that the case against the accused is weak, or if it is of the view that further investigations are required to gather evidence for its case. Unless the judge expressly directs otherwise, such a discharge does not amount to an acquittal. This means that if the prosecution is able to obtain additional evidence to bolster its case, it may bring criminal proceedings against the accused again at a later stage.