Convicted Person's Liability for Private Complainant's Attorney Fees

The court addressed an appeal concerning the allocation of legal costs after a criminal conviction, specifically whether the convicted person should bear the private complainant's attorney fees incurred during the trial court proceedings. The reasoning emphasized that under the relevant statute, a convicted person is generally responsible for costs, including the opposing party's attorney fees, but can be exempted "to the extent that he did not cause the costs." The court found that although the initial incident was minor, the complainant was justified in retaining counsel to understand procedural obligations and potential cost risks, especially since the defendant contested the charges until the trial, making the expense necessary and proportionate, thus warranting that the convicted person cover these costs unless they were unnecessarily incurred, which was not the case here despite the complainant's minimal involvement in the actual hearing.