The BBC reported today that West Midlands Police sent members of staff to Birmingham Magistrates’ Court to Tweet cases during the course of the morning.
Ch Supt Stephen Anderson said there had been a decline in court reporting in recent years.
He said the initiative was designed to make the public more aware of the cases police deal with.
The force sent its own staff into court for a morning on Tuesday to cover the cases and post them online minutes after they had concluded.
Are newspapers still sending people to cover court on a regular basis or are only the high profile cases covered?
This is a subject close to my heart, as lack of court reporting was an issue readers raised on a regular basis.
The last newspaper I worked for sent reporters to magistrates’ court every day, although they didn’t always stay.
Cases from the court appeared in the newspaper every week. However, until about 2008, the court used to provide a list of every case and a list would be published every week.
It was the end of the list of minor cases that gave the impression reporters weren’t attending court. It seems court services won’t print anything out anymore.