Irish Petty Sessions Court Registers 1828-1912

[maryalex]

I am currently looking through Irish Petty Sessions Court Registers 1828-1912 for Ballinrobe, Co. Mayo.  The final result  for a lot of cases seems to be "n.a."  or "N.A."
Could anyone please tell me what that means?

[ballydw]

could it be "not available"?

[maryalex]

It possibly means "Not Available" but I don't think so.  It appears in the column where the final outcome of the proceedings is recorded.  It does not appear when the charge is withdrawn or the case is dismissed or adjourned or when a fine has been imposed.

What could be a less abbreviated version [if only I could decipher it] of "n.a." /"N.A." is shown on the attachment.

[ballydw]

"Not applicable"?

[maryalex]

I would usually interpret "N/A" as "Not Applicable" but that makes no sense as the outcome of a court case. 

[deebel]

I have a page of a register from Cavan and the common entry in the far right column is "No Appearance" in longhand.

[maryalex]

I have a page of a register from Cavan and the common entry in the far right column is "No Appearance" in longhand.

A page from Ballinrobe shows "No app" which certainly could mean "No Appearance".  However, "n.a." is often the final outcome of a case.

I can't believe that a case would be dropped just because the defendant did not show up.  Could it be that the case would be dropped if the complainant did not show up? 

[deebel]

Doesnt mean the case is dropped..just means the accused didnt show on the day. Probably next would be an escalation perhaps a warrant for arrest

[maryalex]

I agree that the non-appearance of the defendant is very unlikely to cause a case to be dropped but what if the complainant did not turn up?

In the cases I looked at, "n.a" was always the end of the matter.  I folowed the progress of each case to the end.