what happened at court

[kath1947]

how do I find out the outcome of a recent trial and the sentence given

[sara3]

you can ring the court and they will tell you. I think you'll be put through to the Listings section. it's public information once it's been heard, so they won't even ask who you are.

[Ethel]

Have you tried it? Did they tell you?

If not, it may mean trawling through the local paper at the library

[Buenchico]

As Sara3 indicates, every court must keep an official register of its proceedings, which is a public document. It only shows the basic information (e.g. "On 14 October 2008, John Alfred Smith was convicted of an offence contrary to the Theft Act 1968 and sentenced to 6 months custody"). The only way to read details of the trial (if any were published) is to read the reports in local paper (which can be consulted at your local library).

You can find court contact details here:
http://www.hmcourts-service.gov.uk/HMCSCourtFi nder/

Chris

PS: I've just seen the time of your post. It indicates that you're either nocturnal or possibly in the USA. The Answerbank is UK-based. If you're in the USA, try one of these sites to obtain an answer relevant to your country. (It might be necessary to say which state you're in):
http://www.answerbag.com/

http://www.answers.yahoo.com/

[spammylou]

From what I understand as I tried to do this myself; the court can tell you within 7 days of the trial, but after that they are not obliged to do so. why this is who knows I think criminal offences should be public knowledge available anytime.