Have you ever wondered what goes on inside the Provincial Courthouse located on First Avenue? Well, I have. Thankfully, I've never had reason to go in there before.

Last Thursday, I spent a couple of hours watching the criminal court sitting and it was pretty interesting stuff.

There were a lot of nervous looking people sitting in that courthouse. I guess if you were going to Provincial court because you had to, you'd be nervous, too.

The criminal court is only in session once a week, on Thursdays, so they have a lot of ground to cover. After watching for a while, I figured out that there are both Provincial AND Federal prosecutors there, since some of the cases the judge hears have jurisdiction in either one or the other. A steady stream of defense lawyers come in and each is able to deal with their clients' cases. Some of them are there acting as "agents" for other defense lawyers who couldn't be there in person. And some have their clients there and some don't.

The court also uses new technology. A couple of defendants "attended" from the Calgary Remand Centre by video conferencing equipment. There are cameras so the judge can see the defendant and the defendant can see the judge. In one case, a defendant was brought out from a back room by RCMP officers - obviously, he was still in custody. Seeing someone in handcuffs definitely makes this a very real experience.

The judge rules the courtroom with the help of her court clerk. Both wear traditional robes, making it all very official. Lawyers and prosecuters - and those of us in attendance - are expected to bow to the judge upon entering or leaving the room. She does represent the Crown, after all.

There's a very definite police presence - two always seemed to be in the room and a couple of others drifted in and out. Some were RCMP but there was at least one from the Calgary Police Service.

Much of what took place involved recheduling of court dates. Lawyers asked for additional time to review their cases or get more information from the prosecution. Defendants asked for additional time to retain counsel. What was interesting was how long some these cases drag on. In a few instances, new court dates in 2013 were asked for. The judge even remarked on why there was a need for such long delays. And sometimes she chastised the accused for taking so long to get their defense organized.

The longest discussion was about whether or not to revoke one person's bail because of repeated instances of failure to appear. It was encouraging to see the thoughfulness with which the judge approached this case. She ensured she got all the facts of the case before agreeing to issue a judgement that will see this particular person forfeit over $5,000 in bail money. And then she had to issue a warrant for his arrest. The entire discussion between the judge and the prosecutor took at least 20 minutes. I'm not sure I would have been so thorough, particularly given that the individual involved was NOT in court and had not even sent a lawyer to represent him. Fascinates me that someone would just not bother when there was so much at stake.

 I've been called to testify in a court case and I've been called for jury duty - twice - but always in Calgary. It's really interesting to see how our judicial system works. Just glad I got to choose to be there.