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Court
in the Act, which completes the trilogy, concentrates on the
work of the police force, the magistrates' and other courts
in WWII Hastings. As the effects of war took hold, there was
hardly any aspect of home front life that was not controlled
by some Government Act, Regulation or Order, putting even
more pressure on already overworked police officers.
There passed before the magistrates'
courts a parade of 'spies', aliens, pacifists, looters, wartime
racketeers and small-time criminals. Added to these were hundreds
of usually law-abiding people, who found themselves in court
for flouting often not properly understood laws. Sentences
were handed down that sounded like something out of 19th
Century history: A fine for stealing one onion from an allotment,
a few apples from a tree or vegetable peelings from a dustbin
or a month in prison for allowing light to escape from behind
a curtain.
Meanwhile, the formidable Government Enforcers stalked the
land incognito, seeking to trap unwary traders and citizens
and bring them to justice. Police Court reports from the period
1939 to 1945 give an insight into a little discussed aspect
of the locality in WWII. “Vigilant”, The Hastings
and St Leonards Observer's 1940s columnist, provides background,
with comment on the foibles and morals of a seaside town under
fire.
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