A SENIOR magistrate mourned the impending loss of Richmond's Magistrates Court yesterday as she presided over cases for the last time.

JP Catherine Carr is retiring as chairman of the joint benches of Northallerton and Richmond magistrates after 23 years' service, the past eight in her current post.

Yesterday, local solicitors, the Crown Prosecution Service, clerks to the justices, ushers, the probation service and fellow magistrates gathered at Richmond Magistrates' Court for a brief farewell ceremony.

Mrs Carr said she was sad to be standing down but said that her greater sadness was that, despite a spirited campaign against the court's closure, in which she played a full part, Richmond's role as a centre for justice appeared to be drawing to an end.

The court has been earmarked for closure and, if an appeal fails, then it will deal with its last cases at the end of next year.

Mrs Carr said: "I do not think the quality of justice will suffer. We are fortunate in that we have some very good staff who will move to Northallerton.

"But, for people who live in the Richmond area, it will not be local justice anymore, which I still think is regrettable.''

Speaking of the work of a magistrate, she said: "Sometimes we have to make some very hard decisions which have a real impact on people's lives and that is not easy."