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| Version 0 | Version 1 |
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| Magistrate resigns in Twitter row | Magistrate resigns in Twitter row |
| (about 7 hours later) | |
| A magistrate has resigned from the bench following a complaint about his use of the Twitter network. | |
| IT consultant Steve Molyneux, from Telford, Shropshire, posted messages on the social networking site about cases at the town's magistrates' court | |
| He said everything he reported on Twitter had already been said in open court and he had done nothing illegal. | He said everything he reported on Twitter had already been said in open court and he had done nothing illegal. |
| Mr Molyneux said he had been making use of the latest technology to bring "transparency" to the judicial system. | Mr Molyneux said he had been making use of the latest technology to bring "transparency" to the judicial system. |
| The people who read the Twitter read the same thing in the newspaper that evening Steve MolyneuxFormer magistrate | |
| Mr Molyneux, a magistrate for 16 years, said he chose to resign after an individual within the court system lodged a complaint. | |
| "I think things have escalated out of control," he said. | "I think things have escalated out of control," he said. |
| "I was using the technology after hearing a remand case just to inform local people and others that follow me in my role of magistrate and didn't think I'd done anything wrong. | "I was using the technology after hearing a remand case just to inform local people and others that follow me in my role of magistrate and didn't think I'd done anything wrong. |
| "I didn't prejudice a case, I didn't do anything like that." | "I didn't prejudice a case, I didn't do anything like that." |
| 'Seeing justice' | |
| He later told BBC Radio Five Live that he accepted he had to be "careful of the language" he used, but did not accept he should not use the technology. | |
| In fact, he argued, his feed was providing people with a service. | |
| "I use it to communicate with the public. The people who read the Twitter read the same thing in the newspaper that evening. | |
| "The fact [is] I used a piece of technology that allowed others [to know about the case outcome] that may not have read the local newspaper but were just as interested. I saw no harm in it." | |
| He said he believed the judicial system needed to embrace technology to ensure transparency so that the public could see "justice has been done". |