No Surprise There Then

This PCSO corruptly sold information from the Police computer - guess which papers bought it?

A Breath Of Fresh Air

This report of remarks by The Justice Secretary is such a refreshing contrast to the heavy-handed bullying of the Blair-Brown years.
You wouldn't have heard Blair say:- 'we would prefer not to legislate'. Once he had reached a consensus on the no.10 sofa and run it by Alastair Campbell he would have had a Bill drafted before breakfast, and rammed through in a matter of weeks. What an illiberal mess that led to, time after time.
I do not suggest that Ken Clarke is perfect, any more than the Coalition's policies are, but isn't it nice to hear words of reason emanating from Whitehall?

Il Faut Cultiver Notre Jardin

You may find that the blog takes a more introspective view than usual over the next couple of months, as my bench, along with many others, goes through the process of merging with two neighbouring benches. As one of the greybeards attached to my court I am taking part with the Bench Chairman in the process of managing the merger at magisterial level. HMCS staff are working very hard to sort out admin and staffing issues, driven as ever by desperately tight budgets. Merging our three benches will involve the loss of two smaller courthouses, leaving us with three, with about a dozen courtrooms between them, to serve a population of about 700,000 people. It's not just about real estate though, because the number of available courts will be driven by the size of the pool of legal advisers. LA's are qualified lawyers on Civil Service terms, so they do not come cheap. Their numbers are being trimmed, (and maternity leave for those remaining doesn't help) so there will be a cap on the number of courtroom days we can sit. Here are a few of the problems that we are addressing:-
Do we use one courthouse or three to deal with Youth work? It is notoriously difficult to get young offenders to court on time when they have just a few miles to come. Faced with a long bus ride, many may not bother, with all the cost and frustrations that involves.
It is more efficient to concentrate some kinds of work in one courthouse - this already happens with traffic, TV licensing and suchlike. This means that JPs will have to be prepared to move about to keep up their experience of different kinds of work. Not everyone will like this.
Travel and subsistence costs are bound to rise, but nobody has any idea how much. I met an old pal who sits in Buckinghamshire the other day, and he told me that JPs attached to High Wycombe court are being sent on occasion to sit in Milton Keynes. That is something like a 100 mile round trip, involving a good three hours on the road, taking a route that is notorious for congestion at rush hour. 100 miles in a 2-litre car is a £58 mileage claim, with staff mileage expenses on top. In our case, the courthouses are only about ten miles apart, but along routes that are awkward for some colleagues.
Because magistrates' courts were historically self-governing there are many differences in local practice, such as whether or not people sit half-days (we don't, some do) whether rotas are quarterly, half-yearly or annual, how to handle swaps (staff do it in some courts, we do our own emails except in emergencies).
So as you may see there is a lot to sort out, and time is short. In late summer we have to elect new officers and committees, in preparation for the whole thing to go live on January 1st.
Above all we have to meld three benches into one that retains the character and camaraderie of its precursors, while concentrating on serving the public well with horribly limited resources. With goodwill and hard work, we can do it.

Cheeky Boy Faces Bum Rap

Thanks to Bernard for pointing me to this remarkable headline.

Lesson

D'ye know, scarcely a day in court passes without my learning something, be it banal or significant.

As one born and bred in West London I am pretty familiar with the local language, but I had to do a bit of deduction the other day. A witness kept referring to the fact that the person he was with was about to 'do one' and after a few reiterations I had to ask. "Mr. Parkins" I said; "When you say that Mr. Harris was going to 'do one', do you mean 'do a runner?'.
He seemed surprised at the question, and replied "yes", then carried on with his evidence.

Ex Middlesex semper aliquid novi, as the Roman nearly said.

How Could They?

This report will fuel the 'why-oh-why' and the 'out-of-touch' fans in the dimmer tabloids.

A Muslim extremist who burnt poppies on the anniversary of Armistice Day was today fined £50.

The penalty imposed on Emdadur Choudhury, a member of Muslims Against Crusades (MAC), was immediately condemned as an “insult to Britain’s war dead”.

The sentencer is not a proper magistrate like me, but rather the Chief Magistrate, Howard Riddle, a District Judge (Magistrates' Courts).

He sentenced the offence, not the offender, and came in at a tad below the fixed penalty for a Section 5, but unlike an FPN case there will have been costs and surcharge to pay.

It was a sensitive case, but I suspect that he may have been right in treating it on a par with any other gobby street yobbo. If someone is looking for martyrdom, there is a lot to be said for denying it to him. I have done the same myself in the past, and it still seems to have been a good idea.

Er - Sorry 'Bout That

The above is what a US officer is supposed to have said after a map reading error resulted in the razing of the wrong village in South Vietnam.

I wonder who will say what about this?

The landlord of the Bristol landscape architect Jo Yeates has been released from police bail nine weeks after another neighbour was charged with her murder.

Christopher Jefferies, 66, a retired school teacher, was originally arrested on December 30 on suspicion of murdering Miss Yeates, who was found strangled on Christmas morning. Miss Yeates had been missing for eight days since attending a Christmas party with colleagues from the Bristol firm where she worked when she was found covered by snow by a couple out walking their dog.

Mr Jefferies was released without charge two days later but until last Friday police had not clarified his status as an official suspect even after another man was charged with the murder.

Or - this?

Before I am accused (again) of having an anti-police agenda, may I say that it is the media from which a statement is due.

Since there are currently a few burnt fingers over contempt, we may have to wait for a conclusion to the Yates case for an apology. Don't hold your breath though.

Looking on the bright side, Mr. Weirdo (as was) can look forward to a nice new home and a world cruise or two as recompense for his savage treatment at the hands of Fleet Street.

Sadly I Was Too Busy To Join This Bench

" And the next case, ma'am is Ms Chantelle Miggins, who is said to have watched her television set without a licence"

Batsman Out

There are reports that a top cricketer has declared himself to be gay, a move that has attracted admiration for his courage in the macho world of top-class professional sport.

This reminded me that in more than two decades on the Bench I have only ever sat with one openly gay colleague. Common sense tells me that I have probably sat with very many, but the chap concerned was the only one who has ever spoken about his (male) partner with whom he had just spent a holiday. There was nothing in-your-face about the pre-court chat, and the existence of the partner came into the conversation naturally. Most JPs are small-c conservative I suppose, but it is still surprising that more do not feel comfortable about allowing their sexuality to become known.

Perhaps it is a justifiable fear of the sniggering nudge-nudge of the tabloid press: I can just see the Sun running a headline like "BANGED UP BY THE GAY-P". Yuk.

Slow Learner

I always find it rather sad to see an elderly person in the dock, but as people nowadays stay active for longer, it is not unusual. One of the most poignant sights I have ever seen is the old codgers' wing at Wandsworth Prison. Many of the cells have wheelchairs or walking frames parked outside their doors, and there are some raised flower and vegetable beds in the yard to give the old inmates some work to do, the usual workshops being impractical.
Last year we saw a man of 70 who had committed yet another offence of dishonesty. His record was a great sheaf of paper, detailing convictions that started in 1951 when he was a young boy (discharged, costs half-a-crown) and going on to list countless prison sentences, none of which had the effect of making him pack it in.
What I wanted to say was "Look, you silly old bugger, you have been a thief for 60 years, and you still can't see that you are rubbish at it - that's why you keep getting locked up. Go away and make the best of your old age. The pension will even pay better than thieving". I didn't say it of course, but then what difference would anything I say make to him?
Incorrigible isn't a word that comes up in court much nowadays, but this old bloke is exactly that.