People guilty of committing serious crimes, including attempted murder, are being charged with lesser offences to save time and costs in Scottish courts, according to evidence presented to MSPs.

Lawyers have compiled a dossier of cases in which serious crimes have been downgraded to free up court time and trim budgets, as part of recent summary justice reform (SJR). The most high-profile case involved William McClure, who admitted stabbing his victim in the chest and severing his bicep to the bone last month.

Lawyers said he should have been charged with attempted murder at the High Court, where he would have received a jail sentence of up to 12 years. Instead he appeared at Glasgow Sheriff Court, charged with assault to the danger of life and was sentenced to four years in prison. Under the automatic early release scheme, he will be free in two years.

Gerry Considine, former president of Glasgow Bar Association, said there was a developing pattern of cases being moved from the High Court to sheriff courts and from sheriff courts to district courts. “It’s not justice,” he said. “It’s about saving money on court administration, witness expenses and fiscals.”

Kenneth Cloggie, president of the Edinburgh Bar Association, said: “If it’s murder or rape it will be tried in the High Court, but if it’s attempted murder then it’s being prosecuted in the Sheriff Court.”

“What seems to be happening \ is that the direct measures have gone beyond the expectations of the report that started them, and beyond the expectation of MSPs. A big concern is inconsistency. Some cases are being prosecuted while comparable one are given fines. It seems to be a bit of a lottery depending on the fiscal you get on the day.”

Martha Rafferty, a defence solicitor with the Glasgow firm of Anthony Mahon, said: “The principal deterrent to offending is prosecution in the criminal courts. If that deterrent is removed, the incidence of offending will increase.”

Pauline McNeil, the Labour MSP and former chair of Holyrood’s Justice 1 committee, is demanding a parliamentary inquiry into the most recent reforms of the justice system, which took effect in mid-March.

The Crown Office estimated that the shift to “diversion from prosecution” would result in a 20% decrease in summary court cases. Early reports suggest up to 50% of cases now never see court.

The reforms, initiated under the last Labour-led government, were not aimed at saving money, but official documents suggest the SNP government is using them to save millions amid the worst budget squeeze of devolution.

In a 200-page paper issued in April, the Crown Office said it intended to save £1.9m through the reforms this financial year and £3.7m in 2009-10.

A spokeswoman said: “The SJR reforms do not change prosecution policy on serious crime, including sexual offences and attempted murder.”

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