Full Circle

[bibblebub]

Do the right wingers who post questions on AB realise that, on the one hand, they tend to clamour for sentences that match the crimes committed, e.g. the death sentence for murder, yet complain that this country is about to become subjected to Sharia law? Other than that is Islamic, doesn't that provide the retribution that they seek?

[Old_Geezer]

Maybe a punishment that fits the crime is not the same as one the same as the crime, or which drags society down to the same level as the criminal, or worse ?

[mikey4444]

Bibs...I don't know much about Sharia law, but it would seem perfectly reasonable for the British general public to expect that a sentence delivered by a Judge should be commensurate with the crime committed.

I am far from being right-wing (God forbid ! ) but it seems daft that most prisoners are ex-prisoners, ie they are repeat offenders. If your car is broken into or your property is damaged, as has happened to me recently, its no relief at all to know that the person responsible for the crime will out of prison shortly and be preparing his next crime.

I'm not sure if that helps answer your question.

[New Judge]

I don’t consider myself Right Wing (I don’t even know what it is supposed to mean). So to answer your question, I don’t support Sharia Law or its penalties for two reasons: (1) because such measures have not been approved by the UK Parliament and (2) I am not looking for retribution in criminal sentences. There are four objectives to sentencing (in descending order of importance in my opinion): punishment, protection for the public, reparation and rehabilitation. So instead I call for robust penalties commensurate with the seriousness of the offence, the circumstances of the offender, and sentences aimed at achieving an appropriate mix of the objectives above. Penalties under Sharia Law seem to provide none of these..

There is a deal between the State and the people whereby individuals will not take retribution on people who commit crimes against them and instead the State will provide appropriate punishment on their behalf. For this deal is to be worth its salt the people must be confident that the penalties provided match the crime committed. In recent years sentencing guidelines have suppressed penalties and the police have taken to issuing fixed penalties for repeat and serious offenders, The “deal” is being broken but Sharia Law and its penalties are not the answer.

[Orderlimit]

I think the general public would certainly be justified in wanting harsher sentences for serious / career criminals, and sent to prisons which operate a regime harder than what we currently have.

The Sentencing Council, (which replaced the Sentencing Guidelines Council and the Sentencing Advisory Panel in 2010), is a quango of Britain's most liberal Judges and Lawyers. They have more or less taken the discretion away from Judges, who hear all the facts of individual cases and are now dictated to by a Committee, whose role appears to be to protect and reduce the Prison Service's budget.

[Orderlimit]

I agree with NJ, regarding the police using inappropriate methods to finalise crimes such as using FPN's etc. The current issue at the moment is the use of police Cautions which are still being dished out to repeat offenders and serial menaces, a counter-productive exercise in the longer term. Not only that, there are an alarming number of cautions given out to people who would only warrant a verbal warning but the statistic hungry bosses need to justify their exsistence and need these figures that it produces.

[Orderlimit]

Police cautions under review!

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-22005070