Since reaching 100wpm shorthand, I have found court reporting to be a treasure trove, with each sitting providing five to six very strong stories.
In one court session I watched as a homeless man was sent to prison after stealing food (story here). Presenting it in the right way it provoked discussion without editorialising in the story – although on social media I did promote debate.
On the same day I reported on a mother attacking cops as they tried to arrest her son, and a woman launching an assault outside a pub.
But the story that performed the best was a man being convicted for sending shocking sexual messages to what he thought was a 13 year old girl.
On a number of occasions he contacted a police sting account saying he was ‘horny’ and asking the fake girl ‘do you want to see me w**k?’
His charge ‘engaging in sexual communication with a child’ was an either-way offence and we were lucky that the entire proceedings were dealt with by the Magistrates Court rather than being sent on to Crown Court.
The ‘sell’ on this story was obvious, but it relied on the basic but vital ability to be 100 percent confident in my shorthand notes.
I was pleased with the heavy amount of detail I could include, along with the ‘courtroom colour’ which made the story even more interesting.
The story had around 11,500 page views and a respectable engagement time for a crime story of 41 seconds.
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