Could you be a magistrate?

[Netcurtainnelly]

There's a big volunteer recruitment drive for magistrates at the moment?
Does it interest you?

I sit as a magistrate and I love it!

I’d be very interested but I can’t afford to have unpaid time off from my job. If it were paid- even at minimum wage- I’d be quite keen.

www.gov.uk/become-magistrate/can-you-be-a-magistrate

"Pay and allowances
Magistrates are not paid, but many employers allow their employees time off with pay.

"If you lose out on pay, you can claim an allowance at a set rate, as well as allowances for travel and subsistence."

thanks @TyneTeas , I’m self employed and claims based unfortunately at the moment!

There is a financial loss allowance for self-employed magistrates

I think they’ve got quite a cheek expecting people to do it on a voluntary basis. I was shocked when I found out it was unpaid.

I started to look into this a few years ago but a cancer diagnosis (and treatment) rather got in the way. I saw an old colleague/friend a few weeks ago and discovered she's now a magistrate - it's 8 days a year and she enjoyed the training, and the work itself. When she applied, she was already over 50,ex-white collar job, privately educated and white...

Must get back onto this. Thanks OP for the thread!

I applied years ago and was brushed off. I had qualifications related to law, working class, no criminal background, wide ranging work experience
I'm not a stupid person.
They didn't want to know.

Have you heard of the Dunning-Kruger syndrome?
Maybe everyone is above average 🤣

Ooh 👀

Thank you, I will sign up for updates (my region isn’t recruiting rn)

I’d be no good I’ve got very short patience with some people; I cannot sit by & listen to any girl if child cruelty; animal abuse or domestic violence; out & out racism is not something I will put up with either; so anyone who comes up before me will get very shirt thrift & repeat offenders I don’t do softly softly approach I’d want them doing hard mundane labour 😂😂😂 I’d be their worst nightmare 😂😂😂😂

Well, obviously @Missingpop Sentencing isn't a free ride , there's guidance and rules and things you have to do. You don't just sit there and make it up.

Considerable research shows that although the public thinks they would over sentence, they generally under sentence, so that's worth thinking about

I thought it would be doing one’s bit for society but would definitely fear reprisal taking.

Well, in a couple of decades, I've not been reprised against

Yes you’re right you’d be awful. There’s this thing called natural justice which involves giving everyone a fair hearing and treating everyone equally before the law. But at least you know you’d be bad, that’s good I suppose!

You wouldn’t be the offenders’ worst nightmare either, you’d be absolutely everyone else’s, because everything you would do would be appealed! So the actual offenders would probably love you 😂

i think i would be bias and the power would eventually consume me and i would forge my own brand of my justice depending on the cases etc, i would usually follow my own discretion in judgements etc

Lol @TheMerryJoker You just can't

the issue is some do deserve to pay more than others and justice should not be equal it should reflect the crimes committed, etc

Yes and no. On the one hand I think 'what kind of absolute ....person.... volunteers to sit in judgement of other people'? and then on the other I think that I know exactly what kind and that I should volunteer to prevent them being the only ones. Perhaps this is a regional thing though as where I live if you are up before a magistrate it will be a Brexit enthusiastic male gammon with views on immigration, race and 'yuf'.

@TheMerryJokerir does

@Thewolvesarerunningagain do you seriously think that nobody should ever judge anybody ever? If your child was killed or injured, would you not want somebody to judge the perpetrator?

people judge all the time, eg managers etc

I would love to, but am very wary that my private life (polyamorous and on the kink scene) wouldn't be compatible or could be problematic