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Residents to choose punishments for offenders
3:15pm Wednesday 1st October 2008
WILTSHIRE residents will be given a say in the work offenders undertake in their community under a trial scheme launched this week.
Wiltshire has been chosen by the Ministry of Justice to be one of six nationwide pilot areas for the Citizens' Panels scheme.
Under the initiative, Citizens' Panels will be able to tell probation officers and the council what punishments would best benefit their areas.
The panels will be able to suggest sentences such as the clearing of graffiti or litter at specific sites.
James McDonald, chairman of the Longmeadow Tenants and Residents Association in Trowbridge, has welcomed the initiative.
He said: "In principle we'd be all for it. The residents would see the troublemakers doing something to make amends.
"At the moment we don't see anything being done at all. It's something to look forward to."
The launch comes after a poll found 82 per cent of people would like to know more about the type of work offenders were doing, with more than half wanting a say in the types of punishments undertaken.
Wiltshire Probation area assistant chief officer, Martyn Strike, said: "We welcome the initiative and look forward to working alongside the local authority to enable local people to both have a voice and play a part in directing work in their neighbourhoods."
The idea behind the scheme is to make the justice system more open and accessible to the general public.
Other areas taking part in the pilot scheme include Greater Manchester, Leicester and north Wales.
Your Say YourTimes
tony mac, satdown says...
4:53pm Wed 1 Oct 08
norville wrote:Have to agree with norville. Is it not time that people started to take a realistic look at what is going on around them. The lunatics have taken over the asylum and at what cost to the rest of society. Stand up and be counted.
And the first thing that would happen is the PC brigade would crawl out from under their stone saying it was against the poor little darling's human rights and they would probably be awarded a huge sum of money for the humiliation of being made to do something they would rather not be doing.
P Hancox, Somewhere in the ether says...
7:06pm Wed 1 Oct 08
Necker, Trowbridge says...
9:14pm Wed 1 Oct 08
I hope it works and hope that it has the desired affect on the troublemakers.
If the locals don't know what the criminals need to do to make amends - noone does.
Make it work!
It makes total sense!
moonrakin_wurzel, Trowbridge says...
11:29pm Wed 1 Oct 08
Under the initiative, Citizens' Panels will be able to tell probation officers and the council what punishments would best benefit their areas
Duh... hang on a minute - probation officers and the council telling the courts what punishment to mete out ?
That's just dandy !! isn't it? - why bother with courts at all? (don't start)
This isn't rocket science - what's wrong with inviting the injured parties to court and asking them ?
More form fillers, box tickers and general bureaucratic jobsworth b*llsh*t.
It's a legal system - not a Justice system and it's run to suit the legal profession and their hangers on.
Why not a local court for local people that's fair, quick and hands out proportionate and cost effective punishments for those who break the law ?
Magistrate's Court in Trowbridge anyone ?
Public Spirit, Wiltshire says...
10:03am Thu 2 Oct 08
This is just another nanny state alternative to punishing crime. The Citizen's Panel will not decide the 'punishment.' It will simply decide what tasks are to be carried out under the court's community service orders. I do not expect putting the little darlings in the stocks or flogging them will be allowed in the rules.
This is just another talk shop to achieve nothing new in deterring crime.
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norville, westwilts says...
4:21pm Wed 1 Oct 08