Judge sentences man by mobile phone

A taxi driver has become the first person in England to have a court judgement passed by mobile phone.

According to The Daily Telegraph, the man had been due to attend court but was held up in a traffic jam.

When he called the court to explain, the judge gave him the choice of being dealt with over the phone or having the hearing adjourned.

The man said: "It does not really bother me that I might have made legal history. At the end of the day, I think the court dealt with me in an appropriate manner. If they had adjourned my sentencing to wait for me to appear in court it would only have cost more money and wasted more time."

Courts already use video links for witnesses to give evidence, but this is the first time anyone has been sentenced over a mobile.

In a related story, The Sun reports that a man from Swansea has discovered that he sends text messages in his sleep. He sent the first message 18 months ago, and in one case sent a text to friend saying: "Help, I'm in trouble, someone's chasing me."

When the friend called back the man revealed that he had been dreaming, the paper said.