Wednesday 6th June 2010
Day in the Life of 'A Justice of the Peace' by Derrick Fulford
Derrick Fulford our lunch time speaker (shown left) stated I am a retired A Justice of the Peace (JP) and also a retired Customs Officer who has been invited to give talks on a cruise ship, and enjoy giving talks to Probus audiences, due to their much appreciated welcomes and hospitality, I should be very pleased to repeat any of my talks if anyone is interested. Having received this information we took the opportunity to invite him to Ewell and welcome Derrick to this meeting.
He started by giving a brief synopsis of the appointment and role of a JP as follows:-
Justice of the Peace is a lay person who hears criminal cases such as theft, assault, breach of the peace and road traffic offences in the local courts. Generally they are not legally qualified. A legally qualified person can become a Justice of the Peace, but cannot act in any proceedings in a Justice of the Peace court within their own area.
Justices of the Peace are appointed on the recommendation of Justice of the Peace Advisory Committees under procedures approved by the Judicial Appointments Board and make a vital contribution to the community, this Derrick stated took at least two years to complete!
A Justice of the Peace makes decisions which have a direct impact on the accused who are appearing in court. The decisions also have an impact on the victims, witnesses and the wider community. If a case goes to trial, the Justice of the Peace must decide whether to find the accused guilty or not. In addition, if a Justice of the Peace finds an offender guilty (or if the offender has already pled guilty) the Justice of the Peace is responsible for deciding what sentence to impose. In some parts of the country Justices of the Peace sit in benches of three - however in most areas they sit on their own.
Justices of the Peace do not need special legal training in order to arrive at their decisions. They are ordinary members of the community who use their own judgement and common sense to assess the facts in relation to each case, which comes before them. They come to a view about an accused's guilt, and the correct sentence which should be imposed. The only personal qualities needed for this task are a capacity for fairness; sound judgement; good communication skills and an ability to manage their own behaviour and workload appropriately in court.
A Justice of the Peace always sits with a qualified legal adviser. This means that if a legal issue arises during court proceedings, expert legal advice is always available. Derrick indicated in his case there are normally three JPs sitting either side of the Chair, he jokingly indicated these are referred to as "Book Ends"
Courts vary considerably in their layout, which depends a great deal on the history of the building and the practicalities of its use. While some courts are wood panelled, most are not. Depending on the layout of the room, a claimant may sit on either the right or left in a civil court, just as the prosecution may sit on either side (usually the opposite side to the jury) in a criminal court. A typical court shown below.
Flags are rarely seen in English courts. It is most common for the Royal Coat of Arms to be placed above and behind the judge, or presiding magistrate, although there are exceptions to this. For example in the City of London magistrates' court a sword stands vertically behind the judge which is flanked by the arms of the City and the Crown.
Having covered the formalities of courts protocol and procedure then Derrick gave us a delightful session of cases he has conducted in a most amusing method of mimicking the parts of all the participants and their dialogues, a most fascinating presentation that the written word cannot do justice, but it was great thanks Derrick.
The membership bombarded Derrick with legal questions which he replied in confidence and ease as one would expect from an experienced JP such as Derrick, and it was left to the vote of thanks to express our interest and thanks for a great presentation to which the members responded in our normal manner.
