Victims to choose from menu of punishments

[Jazzy]

Under Theresa May’s plans for a “community remedy”, victims may choose to receive compensation, to have offenders pay for any damage to be repaired, or to see them carry out up to 10 hours of unpaid work in the community.



The range of options will be decided by the new police and crime commissioners consulting with members of the public and chief constables under plans to give victims their voice back, Jeremy Browne, the Home Office minister, said.



Other punishments could include signing an acceptable behaviour contract, drug or alcohol treatment, or mediation to resolve neighbourhood disputes.



But each force area will be free to come up with its own options for punishments which should be “proportionate but meaningful”, rather than a “slap on the wrist”, the consultation document said.



Some forces already use a “community resolution”, a common sense approach where the offender agrees to make amends to the victim without the case going through the criminal justice system, to deal with low-level crime and anti-social behaviour.



Up to 200,000 offences were dealt with this way in 2010/11.



Mr Browne said: “This new power will mean visible justice, straight away, providing transparency to the public, who rightly want to see fair and meaningful punishments.



“Our reforms will place power back in the hands of the people, giving them a proper say in how their local area is policed.”

Source



What are your thoughts on Theresa May’s plans for a “community remedy”?

 

[Evil Eye]

As long as they're picked punishments from a list it couldn't do much harm...

Seems like petty revenge though.

 

[Jazzy]

Would save a lot of court costs.