take witness reports and forensic evidence into account to recommend a verdict. It can also issue on-the-spot fines, order damages to be paid and even suggest jail sentences.

The Electronic Judge is presented with multiple-choice questions such as "Did the driver stop at the red light?" or "Had the driver been drinking alcohol above the acceptable limit of the law?"

Pedro Valls Feu Rosa, a judge in the supreme court of appeals in Espirito Santo state, who developed the program, said the decision-making process in such simple cases required no difficult interpretation of the law.

"If we are concerned with nothing but pure logic, then why not give the task to a computer?" he asked.

The Electronic Judge provides a print-out of its reasoning, and if the human judge disagrees, it can be overruled.

Most people were happy to accept the decisions, said Judge Feu Rosa. - The Independent

18:T55a,London - It's not quite Judge Dredd, the comic-book hero who dispensed rapid - and often nasty - justice from his motorbike. More like Judge RAM: An intelligent computer program that sorts out roadside disputes.The device, which is being used in Brazil, uses an artificial-intelligence program called Electronic Judge. It is carried in a laptop computer to the scene of an accident or dispute, in a legal "rapid-response unit" with a judge and clerk, accompanied by police.It can then take witness reports and forensic evidence into account to recommend a verdict. It can also issue on-the-spot fines, order damages to be paid and even suggest jail sentences.The Electronic Judge is presented with multiple-choice questions such as "Did the driver stop at the red light?" or "Had the driver been drinking alcohol above the acceptable limit of the law?"Pedro Valls Feu Rosa, a judge in the supreme court of appeals in Espirito Santo state, who developed the program, said the decision-making process in such simple cases required no difficult interpretation of the law."If we are concerned with nothing but pure logi