THE Chief Magistrate of the Local Court, Judge Graeme Henson, has totally rejected suggestions of a hidden agenda to eventually relocate Lithgow Court proceedings to Bathurst.
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Recently it was announced that sitting days at the Lithgow Court were to be reduced from next year and that Lithgow Local Court would come under the Bathurst Magistrate circuit.
Lithgow currently shares Magistrate Fiona Toose with Katoomba and Windsor.
Windsor is to also lose sitting days.
Bathurst will lose one day so that its circuit Magistrate can accommodate Lithgow.
That announcement led to concerns that all Lithgow cases would eventually be transferred to Bathurst, as was the case some years ago with District Court sittings.
This gained momentum last week when Attorney General Brad Hazzard refused to rule out the closure of Lithgow Court.
Chief Magistrate Judge Henson has acted quickly to dismiss the reports.
In a prepared statement yesterday Judge Henson said that assertions that there is a process in train to cease sittings of the Lithgow Court were ‘completely inaccurate.
He said:
‘I wish to make it clear that there are no plans to cease sitting at Lithgow.
‘Those who assert the proposed alterations to current sitting arrangements are a preliminary step towards centralising sittings at Bathurst in return for the close of sittings at Lithgow do not do themselves any favours through such ill informed and manifestly wrong scaremongering’
The Judge said a ‘small coterie’ of individuals had made baseless assertions and the motives were questionable.
‘As Chief Magistrate and one who has presided at Local Court sittings throughout the state for over two decades I am acutely aware of the importance of court sittings to local communities. I am also aware of issues surrounding public transport to other locations and the nee3d for justice to be seen to be delivered at local level.’
Judge Henson said it was true that there will be a ‘minor reduction’ in sittings at Lithgow because of the need to alter sitting arrangements on a number of circuits.
This is intended to accommodate a reduction in the number of magistrates funded by government.
“But it is not true that there will be a lack of support for the court at Lithgow.
As with every other court in NSW I will keep an eye on caseloads and delays.”
Judge Henson said that should there be an unacceptable rise in backlogs at Lithgow it would be addressed through providing a magistrate from Sydney to provide assistance.
“Such a logistical issue will not be addressed by moving matters to Bathurst and further reducing sittings at Lithgow outside the current proposal,” he said.
Judge Henson said the claims of a transfer of the sittings to Bathurst had provoked unnecessary concerns in the community.
