MAGISTRATES` TRAINING AND DOMESTIC VIOLENCE

 02. Apr. 2010. – 16:43:45 

I`ve written here on a few occasions about "Domestic Violence" and the fact that there is no such offence in law....... yet. Another "specialist" court has recently been set up in East London; The Thames Specialist Domestic Violence Court at Thames Magistrates` Court in Bow Road subsequently to having met twelve government required criteria ranging from separate entrances for complainants to "magistrates who are trained to deal with domestic violence cases". Although I do not sit in that area I too am a "specially trained magistrate trained to deal with domestic violence cases". I and my colleagues do not have to be "specially trained" to deal with non domestic violence cases, nor any driving offences which fall within our jurisdiction, nor the hundreds of other offences with which we deal every time we sit. 

The nub of the specialist DV training is an attempt to provide us with historical, social and most disconcertingly spurious statistical evidence to take with us into a DV court. My opinion, although I believe it is not shared by the majority of my colleagues, is that violence in a domestic context be judged on the evidence presented in court as is every case in a British court of law.

As a matter of record it has been reported that since the court opened in October 2009 there have been 115 domestic violence trials, resulting in 21 prison sentences and 14 restraining orders for perpetrators. If we assume that each of those 35 disposals represents the result of 35 trials we are left in the dark about the verdicts and corresponding disposals if any of the remaining 80 trials. 

THE GREEN POLICE OF HERTFORDSHIRE

 

01. Apr. 2010. – 23:04:08

Are we as our particular group whatever that might be in favour of a pledge to be gentle with babies? Yes of course we are. Are we pledged to be nice to our elderly mums? Nothing but nice. Do we pledge to walk with our left foot after our right or perhaps our right after our left? Do we pledge to hope that the world does not become too warm even if it`s not our fault? Are we crazy? We would be if we continued in this manner.

Hertfordshire Police is the first police force nationally to sign up to the Nottingham Declaration. This apparently is a voluntary agreement to tackle the causes of climate change. And I had thought they were having a hard time doing the jobs they`re paid to do eg preventing disorder and catching offenders. By subscribing to it they are pledging to address climate change. Not only are they going to be tackling this in the leafy lanes of Hertfordshire they`re going to spread these good works and words to reduce emissions across the country. They have already started to update green policies across Hertfordshire Constabulary including introducing an automatic overnight shutdown of three-quarters of the force's computers. That seems a good idea but what about all the information that I presume comes from all these people and computers who operate 24 hour shifts? I am sure they will pledge that they can cope. Perhaps they should order a few hundred new bikes to spread the good news to the council tax payers. No that`s not quite in the spirit of this post. Let them pledge to consider ordering an especially nice tandem for the Chief Constable and Stuart Nagler, Chair of the Hertfordshire Police Authority.

MAGISTRATES CAN BE TRUSTED SAYS MINISTRY OF JUSTICE

 

01. Apr. 2010. – 15:38:35

      It seems that the government has concluded that Justices of the Peace are not a danger to society. Today a notice has been issued to that effect; namely that we will not have to be certified by the Independent Safeguarding Authority. {see below} That really does make me feel trusted to do justice to all without fear or favour as I and my colleagues swore to do when appointed.  I just needed to be reminded....

Magistrates: Independent Safeguarding Authority

MoJ Statement

Magistrates: Independent Safeguarding Authority

I am pleased to confirm that it has been established that the position of 'Magistrate' is not a regulated activity for the purposes of the Independent Safeguarding Authority (ISA). This means that it will not be a requirement for existing Magistrates, including those who serve on the youth and family panels, to register with the ISA when registration commences from 26 July 2010. ISA-registration will not be required either for candidates for appointment to the Magistracy.

Candidates will need to continue to apply for enhanced level disclosure checks with the Criminal Records Bureau (CRB), and the successful outcome of this check will continue to be a key part of the pre-appointment process.

A new CRB application form is being introduced from late June 2010 and the Magistrates Policy & Appointments Branch at the Ministry of Justice will be sending out a Circular to Advisory Committees in April about this change.

IS HIGH LEVEL CORRUPTION BECOMING ENDEMIC IN U.K?

 

01. Apr. 2010. – 15:24:35

       Although it`s nearly a year since the scandal of MPs` fiddles broke in the Daily Telegraph it seems like yesterday.  Criminal proceedings are underway against four MPs, The Lords is also investigating its own suspected wrong doers. The BBC is attempting to evade answering the question of the identities of its £100K employees.  Banks which are now virtually nationalised beyond the wildest dreams of the late Michael Foot and Aneurin Bevin and are therefore under government control are being castigated for continuing to pay certain staff enormous sums of money which arguably should be being lent to small business.   

        Scandals within public quoted companies, politicians etc and even the judiciary [few and far between] have been with us for hundreds of years. It could be argued that now in the age of the world wide web tracks covering is a trifle more difficult for upper class white collar villains. But now just a day  after the Met Police`s former top non white officer has been thrown out and might lose his pension it has been published that the Chief Constable and Deputy Chief Constable of North Yorkshire Police are the subject of an investigation managed by the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) following allegations that they gave help to relatives applying for work.
       
When corruption appears to be commonplace within the widest definition of public bodies it is truly time to take note.  Combine that with this authoritarian government`s ever increasing control of every day activities, continual attempts to alter public opinion by deceitful use of inaccurate statistics and I would venture to observe that we are at the equivalent of the Goths being on the banks of the Tiber 536A.D.  Our homes won`t be sacked, our cattle will not be slaughtered nor our daughters raped but what we nostalgically refer to as the British way of life will be but a memory  about which social dinosaurs  will reminisce on feast days.

THE PROBATION SERVICE AND ALL FOOLS` DAY;A PERFECT FIT?

 01. Apr. 2010. – 13:12:24 

Today used to be called All Fools Day. In parts of Europe it still is. Its origins are diverse and unclear but are thought to have been referred to in France in the mid 16th century when the country was moving from the Julian to the Gregorian calendar and those who stubbornly continued to follow the former were referred to as Poisson d`Avril, or April Fish which, to this day, remains the French term for April Fools and so the tradition was born. 

There is perhaps a fishy smell about the latest news to come from the London Probation Service or perhaps it is what it appears on the surface to be........a ship of fools manned by fools. On the one hand of government the public must not think that Judges and Magistrates are too lenient in their sentencing and on the other these self same members of the judiciary are exhorted to use non custodial means to punish/rehabilitate those offenders for whom there might be some light at the end of their offending tunnel. No need to mention that the prisons are 95% - 100% full at any one time and cannot accommodate any more £600 per week guests. 

Malcolm Jenkin, director of interventions for London Probation, said London Probation "has temporarily ceased using casual status project supervisors in community payback. He suggested other restrictive measures be considered for convicted offenders. This reduction in availability began on 8th February and ended yesterday 31st March. Harry Fletcher, the assistant general secretary of the National Association of Probation Officers, was quoted as saying, "not surprised". He added that some officers now only had time to spend only fifteen minutes a week with offenders they were meant to be monitoring. 

A spokesperson from the Probation Service said, "The effect was small and manageable, and had no effect whatsoever on the overall length of unpaid work to which offenders were sentenced. " 

That spokesperson really does take us all for fools referring to the arrangement as if it were pre planned and a normal occurrence and had little relationship to the admission that cash had run out before the year end. For one thing it demonstrates all too clearly that similarly to HMCS`s pre-occupation with targets for how long to do "this" and how many days until "that" happens no mention of quality or lack of it is considered worthy of comment......after all how can quality be demonstrated or measured to show everything`s just fine. 

Peter`s Principle; the theory that an employee within an organisation will advance to his or her level of incompetence and remain there, governs so many of those on the public payroll from Parliament Square to the local sorting office that St Peter should replace George as the patron saint of England......after all so many emulate him and his theory it`s a perfect fit. 

MINISTRY OF THE WHOLE COUNTRY AND GORDON WANTS IT ALL

 24. Mar. 2010. – 17:32:24 

The Lord Chancellor and the Secretary of State for Justice have chosen Budget Day a few weeks before an election is announced to tell us that Her Majesty`s Court Service which not surprisingly runs the criminal and county courts system etc is to take over the running of the Tribunals Service which deals mainly with employer/employee civil disputes. Once again following the motto bigger is better those who govern us give more control to fewer often incapable worthies.  Education now includes overseeing nursery schools, inland revenue and customs fight for control and many others with a history of amalgamated breakdown have been fodder for the Sunday papers.  Let the big fish remain in what is left of their little ponds......p l e a s e. 

WARRANTS OF ENTRY AND APPLICATIONS TO DISCONNECT UTILITY SUPPLY

 23. Mar. 2010. – 17:51:54

    

        Amongst the "extra" matters dealt with in Magistrates` Courts I have recently commented on statutory declarations.  Another common function for all JPs is deciding whether or not to grant Warrants of Entry for utility companies either to disconnect supply gas or electricity [usually at vacant or business premises] or to replace a regular meter with a pre-payment meter.  It has been and might still be the norm for these applications to be "rubber stamped" without too much investigation. 
       

        However with many colleagues in various courts all over the country I have been consulting a "good practice guide" which encourages courts to take a more inquisitorial approach to these applications in spite of the time taken when there is a crowded list. 
       

        A magistrate from a neighbouring court told me recently that when he was sitting outside his own court he was surprised at the novel questioning of the applicants by the chairman.  It had never happened when he was sitting at his own court.  In the session one application was to disconnect the landlord`s supply in a block of flats the tenants having no say in the matter.  In practice it would probably have meant no lighting to the common parts eg entrance hall and stairways. In view of the possible danger to infirm or elderly occupants falling down stairs that bench refused the application and suggested no further application be made until there was a firm refusal from the absentee landlord to pay the outstanding bill of c£300.  He also described an application to fit a pre-payment meter [always a higher tariff] to an occupier he discovered was two weeks late in an arrears payment previously agreed.  This history was discovered he reported  by the chairman`s questioning the bailiff in quite some detail.
       

        He told me that he had never previously sat on a bench which had refused an application to disconnect and fit a pre-payment meter.  Information from that episode he said would be conveyed to his "home" court.

        Addendum 13th June 2022

       The above was written when I was active in 2010.  Now I am long retired I can add that I was the presiding  magistrate in all matters above a situation which at the time I had to disguise as I had considered publishing well before I retired. Altering my bench`s approach to this subject was my proudest achievement as a J.P.  The iniquitous practice previously employed to literally rubber stamp applications was discontinued in favour of a rigorous inquisitorial approach. I am unaware of how my old bench now treats such applications.  

WHO WOULD HAVE BELIEVED IT? DO WE ACTUALLY PAY THEM?

 23. Mar. 2010. – 17:15:46 

       With the news of the world, literally, not the Sunday Rag, available around the clock one occasionally finds snippets that are just there to be shared.

       Last Friday Avon and Somerset Police opened a dedicated line for applicants for 64 police officer trainees. More than 1,000 applied between 7.00am and 3.00pm and lines were closed. At a time of recession and a surplus of bright school leavers who won`t get to university it was surprising that the force`s spokesperson said they were overwhelmed with the response. Let`s hope the successful applicants make better and more far sighted police officers than those individuals in the HR department of the force. So in two years if a young constable in that area behaves in anything but an extemporary fashion when in contact with a member of the public or can`t tell his Avon from his Somerset don`t blame him blame those who selected him. 
       

       We on the other hand select our MPs when we truly have a choice from candidates who, we hope, show a modicum of common sense. In a report released today, the Home Affairs Committee says "early intervention is key to reducing criminality and the ability to identify those most at risk is an important tool in crime prevention." Now who would have thought it? I was always of the opinion that one is better served by avoiding early intervention in criminal activity and waiting until a truly heinous crime is committed but then again MPs know best don`t they? 

      And to conclude that it`s best to know who are liable to be victims of crime to assist in crime prevention is not just great insight; it`s a revelation for us mere mortals. We can only stand and stare in wonderment at these luminaries of our age.

         

STATUTARY DECLARATION & SERVICE OF SUMMONS

 

21. Mar. 2010. – 13:03:11

Most holders of a UK driving license have heard of "totting"; the addition of penalty points which are endorsed on a license for various offences eg speeding, no insurance, careless driving etc etc. In most cases upon reaching twelve points there is an automatic six month disqualification from driving in this country. It is the accepted practice that in order to ensure a driver is not unaware of the sanction when penalty  points reach or breach the magic twelve s/he is summonsed to appear before magistrates.  The summons is considered "served" when proof of first class posting is presented to the court.  This, as is all too obvious, allows defendants to declare truthfully or otherwise that they have never received such a summons.  There are arguments for and against instituting "signed for" service but that is for another time.

A very common appearance before a bench is the individual making a statutory declaration in which s/he declares and signs to the effect that eg an event has or has not occurred and the applicant wants to put matters straight.  One common such "has not occurred" event is the non receipt of a court summons and therefore the consequent inability to have complied with the subsequent court directive deriving from that summons.

A couple of weeks ago a woman made and signed such a "stat dec" to the effect that she had not received a summons for a motoring offence for which she was in her absence fined and disqualified from driving as a "totter" the court having had a print out from the DVLA in front of it and therefore full knowledge of her previous penalty points.  She had been away from home for three months and as she lived alone nobody had forwarded or opened her mail.  She came to court two days after coming home and reading the summons.  She was advised that after her form had been countersigned by a Justice of the Peace on the bench the matter was "dropped" and the papers would be returned to the CPS and court involved which would at its discretion decide whether or not to re-issue the summons. She was told that she was still able to drive as the points which had tipped her over the edge were erased at least for now.

          

       The whole system of the service of court summons is a cause for concern.  For example there are millions of immigrants new to the country in the last fifteen years; many live in rented accommodation and frequently change address; most are law abiding members of the community but unfortunately anecdotal evidence suggests that they are  liable to appear in court at least as often and possibly at a higher rate than UK citizens. For them and for all citizens the obvious answer is personal service but the cost, the cost, the cost!

IS THE CROWN PROSECUTION SERVICE PROSTITUTING ITS OWN SERVICE?

 
 
18 Mar. 2010. – 22:13:50 

The Crown Prosecution Service has announced that it plans to deploy Associate Prosecutors formally known as Designated Case Workers to prosecute at summary trials at Magistrates` Courts.  These individuals were not and are not qualified lawyers.  When they began work some few years ago in remand courts, dealing amongst other things with bail applications and sentencing we were told they would not be involved in trials where in addition to legal and procedural knowledge the art of advocacy is of major importance.

Think back a few years when nurses` leaders began the push for their new applicants to be graduates and that the messy business of  dealing with patients` actual physical and bodily requirements could be undertaken by lower or virtually unqualified  auxiliaries.  Who heard of teaching assistants actually taking classes fifteen or so years ago?  Police Community Support Officers are on the streets where many would argue trained police officers should be.  The educational requirements for PCSOs are very low but so are their wages.  And there you have it.  Powers that be sniff out jobs which they believe do not need high paid well trained personnel.  And so to the courts.  With the sorry story of the Crown Prosecution Service in London and a surplus of unemployed lawyers it seems ridiculous to infuse this mess with staff not legally qualified however eager they might be. They will be regulated by IPS, a regulatory company established by ILEX to take responsibility for the regulation of Legal Executives. ILEX is the professional body representing 22,000 qualified and trainee Legal Executives and is an Approved Regulator under the terms of the Legal Services Act 2007.

As many doctors have commented on nurse prescribers taking many primary care functions; if they want to do these tasks let them study medicine. Not surprisingly IPS chief executive Ian Watson said the standard was sufficient to ensure competence.  Legal Aid is available to provide legal representation for defendants under certain conditions.  This does not extend to legal executives being paid by the state to defend miscreants.  The only justification for this lowering of standards is not to provide a high class service but to save money.  But don`t wait for any member of the government to admit this.  And the bosses at CPS are like service men and women; they will do their jobs as well as they can and keep their criticism until they are no longer in harness.  Haven`t we heard similar previously from senior policemen, ex chairmen of this or that quango, former generals and of course former cabinet members.  Plus ca change..............