Wildy¿s Handbook for Magistrates (previously published as Blackstone¿s Handbook for Magistrates) is a readable and comprehensive account of the work of magistrates in England and Wales. It examines how magistrates are appointed; what they are empowered to do; how their courts are organised and operated; the kinds of matters they deal with ¿ crimes such as theft and assault, traffic offences and issues concerning children and families; how they go about assessing evidence and deciding what to accept as true; how they decide whether defendants should be released on bail or kept in custody; the sentences they may impose and how they endeavour to make the punishment fit the crime. The book also looks at how legal aid works, a subject of continuing public and political concern. Last, but not least, it gives a flavour of what life as a magistrate is really like, touching on the pressures, responsibilities and rewards of the work. This new edition reflects the many changes introduced over rec