9 - Aims and Types of Sentences Flashcards
Section 142 of the of the Criminal Justice Act 2003 sets out five purposes of sentencing, to which any court dealing with an offender must have regard…
the punishment of offenders
the reduction of crime (including its reduction by deterrence)
the reform and rehabilitation of offenders
the protection of the public
the making of reparation by offenders to persons affected by their offences`
What are the main categories of sentences?
Discharges
Financial penalties
Community orders
Custodial sentences
All available to Magistrates and Crown courts
Magistrates court have upper limits for financial penalties and custody
What are the two types of discharges?
Absolute and Conditional
Absolute Discharges..
Absolute discharge: conviction is recorded but nothing happens
Conditional Discharges…
Conditional discharge: set time period during which time if further offending occurs, sentencing will occur for new offence and previous offence
Financial Penalties…
A fine is the most common penalty
Most likely outcome for summary and triable either way (TEW) offences
Magistrates courts:
Summary offences level 1-5 £200 - £5,000
TEW maximum for adults is £5,000
Crown court fines are ‘at large’ no limits
Compensation must be considered
Costs often considered
Many fines are fixed by reference to the “standard scale”.
The scale has 5 levels, each corresponding to a certain amount.
This means that the level of fines can be updated by changing the value of each level, without the need to amend the legislation relating to each separate offence.
The current values of the standard scale can be found in Archbold or the inside front cover of Stones.
Why were Community Penalties developed?
Developed as alternatives to custody, to incorporate elements of punishment and rehabilitation/reintegration
The CJA 2003 brought in a single Community Order with twelve requirements. The Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012 (LASPO ) added a thirteenth requirement but the Offender Rehabilitation Act 2014 made further changes…
A rehabilitation Activity requirement (introduced by s.15 of ORA 2014)
Unpaid work
Accredited programme
Prohibited activity
Curfew (up to 12 months and for between 2-16 hours in any one day as amended by LASPO Act 2012)
Exclusion
Residence in hostels
Mental health treatment
Drug rehabilitation
Alcohol treatment
Attendance Centre
Prohibited foreign travel (introduced by LASPO 2012)
Rehabilitation activity requirement….
A “Rehabilitation activity requirement” (enacted by Offender Rehabilitation Act 2014) means a requirement that, during the relevant period, the offender must comply with any instructions given by the responsible officer to attend appointments or participate in activities or both. The responsible officer, when instructing the offender to participate in activities, may require the offender to
(a) participate in specified activities and, while doing so, comply with instructions given by the person in charge of the activities, or
(b) go to a specified place and, while there, comply with any instructions given by the person in charge of the place.
(6) The references in subsection (5)(a) and (b) to instructions given by a person include instructions given by anyone acting under the person’s authority.
(7) The activities that responsible officers may instruct offenders to participate in include—
(a) activities forming an accredited programme (see section 202(2);
(b) activities whose purpose is reparative, such as restorative justice activities.
Sections 201 and 213 (activity requirements and supervision requirements) are repealed.
Community Penalties
Costs for Imprisonment
Sending one person to prison for 1 year £37,500
Sending one young person to a young offenders institution £42,000
Community Penalties
Costs for Community Sentences
1 year Community Rehabilitation Order £3,000
1 year Community Punishment Order £2,000
1 year Community Punishment and Rehabilitation order £4,000
1-year Drug Treatment Order £8,000
6 months Intensive Supervision and Surveillance Programme (ISSP) £6,000
Sending someone to prison is on average 12 x higher than a Probation or Community Service Order, which costs about £6 per offender per day.
Community Sentences deal with nearly 4 x as many people as prisons, for only 40% of cost.
Replacing 20,000 prison places with alternative sentences would save the taxpayer £690 million.
ISSP…
ISSP is the most rigorous, non custodial intervention available for young offenders.
As its name suggests, it combines unprecedented levels of community-based surveillance with comprehensive and sustained focus on tackling the factors that contribute to the young person’s offending behaviour. Responsibility for delivering ISSP rests with a dedicated team within Tameside YOT.
Most people spend six moths on ISSP. The most intensive supervision (25 hrs per week) lasts for the first three months of the programme.
Following this, the supervision continues at a reduced intensity (a minimum of five hours per week, and weekend support) for a further three months. On completion of ISSP the young person will continue to be supervised for the remaining period of their order.
Tracking: Staff whose job it is to track the whereabouts of young offenders, reinforce participation in their supervision programme by accompanying them to appointments, providing support and advice.
Tagging: Electronic monitoring of the young offender (for example to reinforce a night time curfew if that is when they are most at risk of offending).
Voice verification: This works by checking the voice print of the young offender over the telephone at times specified in a contact schedule, in order to confirm that they are where they are supposed to be.
Intelligence-led policing: The police can provide overt monitoring of movements of these young offenders at key times to reinforce the programme as well as share information with ISSP staff and the YOT.
What is the aim of the ISSP? and how will we achieve this?
Provide a robust, realistic alternative to custody and reduce offending behaviour whilst meeting both the needs of the community and young offenders.
By providing a structured programme of relevant activities including the 5 core elements: Offending Behaviour Interpersonal Skills Education/Training/Employment Family Support Restorative Justice
The sentencing process…
The court is required to make two principal decisions: the type of sentence and its length (or, in the case of a fine, the amount). The court will first consider the following factors:
The seriousness of the offence
The defendant’s circumstances
Pre-sentence reports
Passing sentence
Appeals
The seriousness of the offence
Such facts as whether the offence was committed on bail for other offences, or whether the defendant is subject to recall to prison or serving a community sentence will usually be highly relevant as aggravating the current offence.
This information may reveal underlying issues, such as a drug problem.
In motoring cases, previous endorsements on the driving record can have consequences, such as a period of disqualification under the “totting-up” rules.
The court will consider the range of sentence as recommended by the sentencing guidelines, and then have regard to the details of each offence in order to assess its seriousness.
This involves assessing the aggravating and mitigating features of the offence. Any hostility based on racial, religious, disability or sexual grounds demonstrated in the commission of the offence will be considered as an aggravating feature.
For example, the use of a weapon in an assault is an aggravating feature, or the fact that a person is in a position of trust if he/she commits an offence of theft.
