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Originally Posted by tweetiepooh
Me thinks that abolishing the short term sentences are being looked at because they can mean the prisoner loses much - family, job, home - and also "learns" in gaol how to do the bad things better.
The upshot is that it doesn't reform the criminal but makes them worse. So someone given a few weeks for shoplifting comes out more likely to repeat or escalate.
Habitual criminals can and should be sentenced to imprisonment but that likely should be longer term.
For some cultures that have an honour/shame motivation some form of public shaming could work better than a simple punishment.
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Where there currently is a less than 6 month sentence, we are talking about people who are not exactly first-time offenders, so the argument of making them worse is nonsense.
There has to be a deterrent effect of some sort.
What do you do when they don't obey the community order or whatever?
Examples from website of my local newspaper(names and addresses omitted).
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failed to comply with a community order; no adjudication, dealt with original offence as follows. Assault; community order made.
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failed to comply with a community order; fined £100, costs £60.
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failed to comply with a community order; order to continue, costs £60.
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failed to comply with a community order; order to continue, fined £50, costs £60.
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failed to comply with a supervision order; fined £133, costs £60.
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failed to comply with a community order; order to continue.
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failed to comply with a supervision order; jailed for 14 days. Stole two bottles of fizzy drink; jailed for seven days concurrent, surcharge £115.
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Unless they're jailed for more than 6 months, a community/supervision order is meaningless