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Reposted by Penelope Gibbs

Transform Justice @transformjustice.bsky.social · 21h

⚠️ Is the term 'vulnerable' helpful when used to describe women in the criminal justice system? Dr Sarah Waite and Lucy Campbell explore in the latest episode of the Transform Justice Podcast.

🎧 Listen to the full discussion - pod.fo/e/32d390

#TransformJusticePodcast #WomenInPrison

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Reposted by Penelope Gibbs

Transform Justice @transformjustice.bsky.social · 8d

💡The slow road to the bench: reforming magistrate recruitment

What is going on with the magistrate recruitment system? Why does it take years to begin sitting? And is the process biased?

📖 @penelopegibbs.bsky.social explores in our latest Insight:

www.transformjustice.org.uk/news-insight...

The slow road to the bench: reforming magistrate recruitment - Transform Justice

www.transformjustice.org.uk

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Penelope Gibbs @penelopegibbs.bsky.social · 8d

@bbcdomc.bsky.social

Transform Justice @transformjustice.bsky.social · 8d

💡The slow road to the bench: reforming magistrate recruitment

What is going on with the magistrate recruitment system? Why does it take years to begin sitting? And is the process biased?

📖 @penelopegibbs.bsky.social explores in our latest Insight:

www.transformjustice.org.uk/news-insight...

The slow road to the bench: reforming magistrate recruitment - Transform Justice

www.transformjustice.org.uk

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Reposted by Penelope Gibbs

Penelope Gibbs @penelopegibbs.bsky.social · 9d

Magistrates should be representatives of the people. But magistracy has always been disproportionately white & middle class. We need excellent magistrates of all kinds but should make more effort to recruit working class & ethnic minority people www.transformjustice.org.uk/news-insight...

The slow road to the bench: reforming magistrate recruitment - Transform Justice

www.transformjustice.org.uk

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Penelope Gibbs @penelopegibbs.bsky.social · 9d

Magistrates should be representatives of the people. But magistracy has always been disproportionately white & middle class. We need excellent magistrates of all kinds but should make more effort to recruit working class & ethnic minority people www.transformjustice.org.uk/news-insight...

The slow road to the bench: reforming magistrate recruitment - Transform Justice

www.transformjustice.org.uk

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Penelope Gibbs @penelopegibbs.bsky.social · 10d

Lay magistrates are essential to the smooth running of our courts. Whether you approve of lay magistrates, its clear we need more sitting now. But is the recruitment system fit for purpose? It still seems biased in favour of white, middle class candidates www.transformjustice.org.uk/news-insight...

The slow road to the bench: reforming magistrate recruitment - Transform Justice

www.transformjustice.org.uk

Reposted by Penelope Gibbs

Transform Justice @transformjustice.bsky.social · 12d

Out of court resolutions are effective, efficient & often preferred by victims. But how much are police forces using them?

🔗📊 Check our newly updated 2025 crime resolution tracker: www.transformjustice.org.uk/crime-resolu...

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Reposted by Penelope Gibbs

Tristan Kirk @kirkkorner.bsky.social · 18d

We have a system of justice which is secretive, known to be flawed and unfair, and week-by-week lands very vulnerable people with harsh criminal convictions

And we have a government which is content for that to keep happening

www.standard.co.uk/news/crime/t...

Teen convicted over no car insurance while battling for life in hospital

The teenager’s harsh criminal conviction came through the controversial Single Justice Procedure

www.standard.co.uk

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Reposted by Penelope Gibbs

Penelope Gibbs @penelopegibbs.bsky.social · 13d

On the day gov stats show delays increasing in the mags' courts our team are going through findings of our volunteers who observed mags' courts in London this year. Their reflections show why justice is slow & why the process is often not very just.

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Penelope Gibbs @penelopegibbs.bsky.social · 13d

"The judge gave long and confusing instructions to the defendant. The defendant looked like Billy no mates - no volunteer support, or family in the gallery".

Penelope Gibbs @penelopegibbs.bsky.social · 13d

"Defendant appeared visibly distressed & anxious throughout the morning, repeatedly entering courtroom to ask the court lister when her case would be heard. Her case had been scheduled for 10 a.m., yet by the time of her inquiries, she'd been waiting for several hours without clarity or reassurance"

Penelope Gibbs @penelopegibbs.bsky.social · 13d

"The defendant explained that he didn't get the letter about his appearance as he wasn't allowed to the address it was sent to"

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Penelope Gibbs @penelopegibbs.bsky.social · 13d

"The prosecution showed video evidence from the police bodycams, but it didn't seem like the defendant had had access to this in advance to prepare a case. He asked to see certain parts, and the prosecution had to try find these on the fly to show the court."

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Penelope Gibbs @penelopegibbs.bsky.social · 13d

The lead magistrate asked court staff to check the defendants address in the system & found that it had been recorded incorrectly as 'Flat 2' rather than 'Flat 1', hence he had not received any letters"

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Penelope Gibbs @penelopegibbs.bsky.social · 13d

"When the lead magistrate asked the defendant what had happened yesterday [non-appearance], he explained that he had not known that he had been summoned to court. He was cautioned on the road at the time of the offence and has had no communication about it since.

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Penelope Gibbs @penelopegibbs.bsky.social · 13d

On the day gov stats show delays increasing in the mags' courts our team are going through findings of our volunteers who observed mags' courts in London this year. Their reflections show why justice is slow & why the process is often not very just.

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Reposted by Penelope Gibbs

Penelope Gibbs @penelopegibbs.bsky.social · 15d

The illegal prosecution of c 59,000 people for not having the right ticket/fare evasion is the biggest (in terms of numbers) British miscarriage of justice ever. All those illegally convicted - railway companies wrongly used single justice procedure court process www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2025/09...

Access Restricted

www.telegraph.co.uk

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Penelope Gibbs @penelopegibbs.bsky.social · 15d

had their convictions overturned but gov hasn't managed to contact 10k no longer convicted people. That its only due to actions of one campaigner - Christian Waters - that this miscarriage was discovered is also a scandal. Our report gives more details www.transformjustice.org.uk/publication/...

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Penelope Gibbs @penelopegibbs.bsky.social · 15d

The illegal prosecution of c 59,000 people for not having the right ticket/fare evasion is the biggest (in terms of numbers) British miscarriage of justice ever. All those illegally convicted - railway companies wrongly used single justice procedure court process www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2025/09...

Access Restricted

www.telegraph.co.uk

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Reposted by Penelope Gibbs

CourtWatch London @courtwatchldn.bsky.social · 26d

⚠️ Inefficiency around pre-sentence reports are a big cause of delays in the mags’ courts.

Almost 1 in 6 of the delays or adjournments observed by courtwatchers throughout the project were so that pre-sentence reports could be written.
🧵[1/6]

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Reposted by Penelope Gibbs

Cassia Rowland @cassiarowland.bsky.social · Sep 3

Excellent (as ever) sleuthing by Penelope on one of the massive holes in available data in the criminal justice system — in this case yet another on the ‘single justice procedure’, the process for prosecuting low-level offences based on paper submissions, with no court hearing.

Transform Justice @transformjustice.bsky.social · Sep 3

💡Transform Justice Director @penelopegibbs.bsky.social
went on a mission to uncover the mysterious single justice procedure case files hidden from public view.

Read more in our latest Insight ⬇️
www.transformjustice.org.uk/news-insight...

Where are the missing single justice procedure Libra court files? - Transform Justice

www.transformjustice.org.uk

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Reposted by Penelope Gibbs

CourtWatch London @courtwatchldn.bsky.social · Sep 5

👁️‍🗨️“CourtWatch has given me a lot to think about.”

One month on from the end of the project, our volunteer courtwatchers have been reflecting about what they learned from their courtwatching experiences; the good and the bad, and what they might do differently going forward.

#CourtWatchLondon

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Reposted by Penelope Gibbs

Charlie Radclyffe @charlierad.bsky.social · Sep 3

A fantastic article by @penelopegibbs.bsky.social, building on the work of @kirkkorner.bsky.social

Highlights additional problems with the Single Justice Procedure (#SJP), this time related to the #HMCTS Libra case management system

And the system failing #openjustice principles. #UKlegal

Transform Justice @transformjustice.bsky.social · Sep 3

💡Transform Justice Director @penelopegibbs.bsky.social
went on a mission to uncover the mysterious single justice procedure case files hidden from public view.

Read more in our latest Insight ⬇️
www.transformjustice.org.uk/news-insight...

Where are the missing single justice procedure Libra court files? - Transform Justice

www.transformjustice.org.uk

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Reposted by Penelope Gibbs

Transform Justice @transformjustice.bsky.social · Sep 3

💡Transform Justice Director @penelopegibbs.bsky.social
went on a mission to uncover the mysterious single justice procedure case files hidden from public view.

Read more in our latest Insight ⬇️
www.transformjustice.org.uk/news-insight...

Where are the missing single justice procedure Libra court files? - Transform Justice

www.transformjustice.org.uk

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Reposted by Penelope Gibbs

Transform Justice @transformjustice.bsky.social · Sep 2

How do we navigate questions of mental illness, ‘insanity’ and culpability in our justice system?

Bradley Hillier and Rhona Friedman discuss on the latest episode of the Transform Justice Podcast.

🎧Listen now: pod.fo/e/319ef0

#CriminalJustice #MentalHealth #TransformJusticePodcast

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