In a quick two-minute hearing Paul Goldspring‚ the chief magistrate cancelled more than 28‚000 wrong prosecutions against train passengers (which happened between mid-2020 and early-2024)
The main company Northern Rail brought most cases - exactly 28‚631 wrong charges while TransPennine Express added 41 more cases this winter; both rail operators used incorrect legal procedures to charge people for not having right tickets
The single-justice system which started bout 9 years ago lets courts handle small-time cases like:
- No TV license
- Missing car insurance
- Train ticket problems
Since late-2016 train companies got permission to use this system but they made a big mistake - they used an old-fashioned law from 1800s that dont work with modern court rules
A Northern Rail rep said: “We say sorry for these errors“ and added that their courts service will contact affected people but they cant answer questions right now; the company still wants everyone to buy proper tickets tho
The chief magistrate already looked at 6 test-cases few months back and said theyre all invalid - now hes doing the same with thousands more cases that used wrong rules