From sexual assault cases, reoffending shoplifters, and fraud - no two days as a magistrate are ever the same. It's a role that has fascinated Anita Atkinson for 30 years and fellow magistrate Adam Rathbone for seven years.
And today they have revealed what it's like to work in some of the North East's busiest courts. Anita, 65, said: "There's a lot that happens in the courtrooms that people don't realise.
"You can get private prosecution cases from the RSPCA. It's not just prosecution by the Crown Prosecution Service, it can be anything.
