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I heard on the news today that they will be brought to court & sentenced quickly. Does that mean prison closures will be put on hold. The justice dept faces a 23% cut................
Quote from: grannyjanny on August 09, 2011, 14:33:04I heard on the news today that they will be brought to court & sentenced quickly. Does that mean prison closures will be put on hold. The justice dept faces a 23% cut................ I just spoke with a friend who is a magistrate. Apparently the first tranche of prosecutions came up today. They mostly pleaded guilty, in the hope of a discharge or minor slap on the wrist. All were referred to higher courts, on the grounds that the magistrates' powers of sentencing were inadequate. Mags can dish out a year's imprisonment for these offences, so it suggests that the riots will indeed be taken seriously.I seem to remember that after the Southall riots, some offenders were given 10 years, much to their horror and that of their families. But no amount of political lobbying made any difference, and they had to serve their time. Well, half of it, anyway.
I know of someone referred to a County Court for ABH for a higher sentence and he was expected to get a prison sentence and ended up with a community service order.
Quote from: Melbourne12 on August 09, 2011, 19:58:52Quote from: grannyjanny on August 09, 2011, 14:33:04I heard on the news today that they will be brought to court & sentenced quickly. Does that mean prison closures will be put on hold. The justice dept faces a 23% cut................ I just spoke with a friend who is a magistrate. Apparently the first tranche of prosecutions came up today. They mostly pleaded guilty, in the hope of a discharge or minor slap on the wrist. All were referred to higher courts, on the grounds that the magistrates' powers of sentencing were inadequate. Mags can dish out a year's imprisonment for these offences, so it suggests that the riots will indeed be taken seriously.I seem to remember that after the Southall riots, some offenders were given 10 years, much to their horror and that of their families. But no amount of political lobbying made any difference, and they had to serve their time. Well, half of it, anyway.Being sent to Crown does not guarantee a heavier sentence. Crown Courts also have 'not guilty' options, and use it often!