Custody Karaoke and Night Shift

Two short stories from recent times gone by.

Custody Karaoke:

It was a quiet day in a recent remand court, with only one case needing returned to custody at the end of the day.

The defendant in question admitted possession of a bladed article in a public place. There were various very distinctive aggravating factors, which I shall not delve into. Suffice to say his offence was at the more serious end of the spectrum. The circumstances were such that we decided to remand him in custody pending the completion of a pre-sentence report, leaving all sentencing options - including sending the matter to the Crown Court - on the table.

The chap in question was dealt with early during the morning session and returned to the cells downstairs pending his return to the (not so) local prison. No sooner had he set foot out of the courtroom than he burst into song. It was quite a persistent and operatic performance, with his voice reverberating through most of the building until lunchtime.

There was then a short pause, presumably as he ate his lunch, before the sanging resumed - even more energetically and enthusiastically than before.

For all it was a quiet day in terms of remands, the court had other business to be dealing with. We were still working at 1 pm, when our Legal Advisor turned to us and said that the Tribunals court, three rooms down the corridor and in closer proximity to the cells, was complaining about the incessant singing emanating from beneath. Was there anything we could do about it?

The sanging continued all afternoon, until around 5 pm when the bus eventually arrived to take our knifeman to prison.

Custody Night Shift:

I was on one of my regular jaunts to a neighbouring court. For all it's not one of my courts, I am a regular face and well known there.

Discussion turned to the fact that the cells had been occupied until after 9 pm on the previous evening, because the PECS contractor, GEOAmey, had been unable to find any available prison cell space until then.

The bus finally departed shortly after 9 pm. It had a 150 mile journey, passing 3 or 4 other prisons, until it arrived at its eventual destination sometime close to midnight.

It is to be hoped that whichever political party forms our next Government really gets to grips with the challenges faced in terms of prison capacity.