House arrests planned for teens

A crackdown on teenage criminals announced by ministers could see offenders face lengthy "house arrests" to prevent them reoffending.

 

Robert Buckland, the Justice Secretary, set out new proposals in a White Paper on sentencing to give judges the power to impose a "tough new form of 'house detention' that severely restricts liberty".

 

Offenders would only be allowed out to attend training, education or a job, with immediate alerts going out to police and probation officers via GPS electronic tags if they tried to leave their homes.

 

Extra restrictions could be imposed by the courts including curbs on internet use, compulsory attendance at drug or alcohol treatment centres and sobriety tags which would alert probation officers if the individual started drinking,

 

The White Paper stated, "This would be a robust order, which would be served in the community and would be based on a highly restrictive and lengthy curfew, that would fully exploit GPS tagging technology. We envisage the order would provide a strong punitive response to crime in a way that current community sentences do not, while enabling those offenders in training, education or employment to maintain those obligations."

 

Pilots of the order for offenders under the age of 21 are planned by Mr Buckland before extending them nationwide and potentially to older criminals. They would not be used against those who would have otherwise received a custodial sentence.

 

Courts will get powers to extend curfews on offenders from the current limit of one year to two years. In a further toughening of community sentences, they could also impose longer curfews of up to 20 hours a day, primarily at weekends, to "increase the punitive nature of a curfew but also enhance rehabilitative benefits such as cutting ties between offenders and criminal associates".

 

According to the White Paper eighty per cent of crime is committed by reoffenders and low-level offenders jailed for less than six months are, on average, responsible for 65 crimes "with community sentences having been tried and failed".

 

As well as protecting the public the reforms are designed to boost the chances of rehabilitation of offenders who would otherwise be in and out of prison on short-term sentences. The approach is combined with longer sentences for serious offenders which will increase prisoner numbers by 2,600 by 2028. This be at a cost of approximately £1 billion which represents circa' £385,000 per place.

 

The Government is committed to a £2.5 billion investment  aimed at increasing the capacity of prisons. 

 

 

PM Law 

Sheffield Solicitors