Magistrate Appointment
Alex was appointed as a Birmingham Magistrate November 2009 and was the youngest magistrate in the West Midlands and the only one from a British Chinese heritage in the West Midlands when appointed.
What is a Magistrate?
Chairman qualified Justice of the Peace performing judicial duties including deciding the merits of cases, evaluating evidence, witness credibility, making findings of fact, determining acquittal or guilt, sentencing, bail and making of orders in domestic, traffic and criminal proceedings.
All Criminal cases start in the Magistrates Court with around 90% kept and dealt with there. Only the most serious cases get sent to the Crown Court.
A list of frequently asked questions and answers are available on this link