The Old Bailey has finally caught up with 21st century technology last week, marking the half-way point in the computerisation of Crown Courts across England and Wales.

XHIBIT (Exchanging Hearing Information by Internet Technology) has been introduced in the Central Criminal Court, the oldest court in the UK, to enable users such as the police, prosecutors and witness groups to obtain necessary case details in minutes.


The system, which has now been rolled out across 56 of the 101 Crown Courts in England and Wales, can update individual court users on the progress of a case via criminal justice agencies; these messages are sent either by text, e-mail, or pager. The public can also track court hearings on-line using the Internet or via public display screens in the court building.


Constitutional affairs minister Harriet Harman QC said: 'Attending court can be stressful at the best of times. With XHIBIT, witnesses can, using the latest technology, now be more in touch with the progress on their case. There will be local benefits too, as police officers spend less time waiting at court to give evidence, and more time policing the streets. This technology is part of the government's aim to bring the court system into the 21st century.'


XHIBIT provides case information to magistrates' courts, the Witness Service, Victim Support, the police, the National Offender Management Service and the Crown Prosecution Service. The police national computer can now be updated much faster and orders made by the court can be processed more quickly from this information.


XHIBIT is the first system to run on the new LINK infrastructure introduced by the Courts Service in 2002. The government estimates that XHIBIT is returning a benefit of £3.9 million per year to the service, from a £20 million contract with EDS. Savings include better use of police time and fewer trials having to be adjourned because witnesses do not turn up. A survey of witnesses found delay a major problem, with only 53% giving evidence on the day called.