YOBS WHO FLOUT ASBOS

ASBO FLOUTING ASBOS

ASBO YOBS ARE TO ESCAPE JAIL

Teenage yobs who breach their Asbos should normally escape going to prison, Government experts said last night. The Sentencing Advisory Panel wants even the worst offenders - where imprisonment is "unavoidable" - to have their maximum jail term cut to just a year. Opponents said the move sent out entirely the wrong message at a time of public horror over the killing of Garry Newlove in Warrington. They said that when a father can be beaten to death for confronting a teenage gang, sentences should be toughened rather than weakened. The panel, which reports to Lord Chief Justice Lord Phillips, wants similarly lenient treatment for adults who flout Anti Social Behaviour Orders. They said the maximum sentence for over-18s should be slashed from five years to only two, dramatically undermining use of the orders as a deterrent. The panel's members, who include senior judges, added that even if the thugs' actions caused "alarm or distress" - the threshold for custody - a community sentence could still be given. Shadow home secretary David Davis said: "The public will be dismayed that breaches of Asbos - the Government's flagship measure to tackle antisocial behaviour - could be treated so lightly, particularly over a 50 per cent drop in the maximum custodial sentence. "As well as addressing the causes of crime like family breakdown and addiction, the Government must also tackle crime itself. This means enforcing the sanctions that already exist. "At a time when drink-fuelled anti-social behaviour is literally destroying the lives of so many innocent people in our towns and communities this would be an insult to the public and contribute to an utter failure to protect the public." The proposals, which have dismayed the Home Office, are the first guidelines on how the courts should deal with breaches of Asbos. The panel said advice for judges and magistrates was needed as half of Asbos are breached. On adults, who currently face five years in jail, the panel said 'breach of an Asbo will normally be serious enough to warrant the imposition of a comcrossedmunity order'. It went on: "The panel takes the view that the custodial threshold will normally be crossed where the breach involved harassment, alarm or distress. "Even where the threshold is a custodial sentence will not be inevitable." Where a breach by an adult involved no harassment, alarm or distress the sentence should range from a fine to a community order. In cases with a lesser degree of harassment, alarm or distress - which are aggravating factors - the punishment should range from a community order to 26 weeks in jail. When there was a serious level of harassment it should be from 26 weeks to two years - three years less than they could currently receive. The advice adds: "In most cases of breach by a young offender, the appropriate sentence will be a community order." Roy Rudham, chairman of the National Neighbourhood Watch Association, said of the recommendations: "It is sending out the wrong message and is just an excuse to reduce the prison population because of overcrowding. "We know Asbos to some lads are a badge of honour and we should be sending out a much tougher signal, especially at a time when we are having a debate over the father killed in Warrington." The panel's paper is open to consultation before being handed to the Sentencing Guidelines Council. The council will consider the proposals before issuing formal guidance to judges. A Home Office spokesman said: "We will feed into the independent consultation in due course. There are no plans to change the sentencing provisions for Asbos." Conmen stay free too Con artists who trick the elderly out of cash or keepsakes could be dealt with by community penalties instead of prison. The Sentencing Advisory Panel has recommended softer treatment for first-time offenders. It said this would apply in cases where the thieves conned a pensioner out of a treasured possession such as a family heirloom. The longest jail sentence should be 18 months, they said, compared with the maximum sentence for fraud of seven years. David Green, of the think-tank Civitas, said community punishments were inadequate. "To choose a victim because they are vulnerable is an act of extreme unkindness and a very low type of human behaviour," he added. "I fail to see the logic in seeking to limit the punishment for such an act." In a consultation document, the Government panel said frauds of less than £5,000 would normally be dealt with by a fine or a community order. A new row over yob violence broke out today as judges and magistrates were told that juveniles who flout Asbos should not be sent to jail. Proposals published today by the Government's Sentencing Advisory Panel state that custody should only be used when it is "unavoidable" - even if orders are breached repeatedly. It says that young offenders should first be considered for community sentence or a fine, partly because of legislation stating that the courts must pay regard to juveniles' welfare when passing sentence. In further advice, it also says that, in the few cases where detention is necessary, it should usually be from four months to no more than 12 months - only half the maximum allowed under the law. The recommendations-will raise new questions about the effectiveness of Asbos, the Government's flagship scheme for tackling anti-social behaviour. Ministers insist that Asbos, which can be used to ban troublemakers from particular areas or engaging in specific activities, are an effective way of protecting the public in spite of figures showing that more than half of the orders are breached. It is a criminal offence to breach an Asbo, carrying a maximum five years in jail for adults and two years for juveniles. The Sentencing Advisory Panel, however, tells the courts that young offenders, aged 18, should generally be let off. Custody should only be considered where the breach of the Asbo has caused "serious harassment, distress or alarm" - a stricter definition than is applied to adults - or if there has been a succession of lesser breaches. Even then, it says, imprisonment should not be automatic. "The younger the offender, the more likely that perseverance with community orders will be more effective than detention in preventing reoffending," the panel adds. Shadow home secretary David Davis today said: "The public will be dismayed that breaches of Asbos - the Government's flagship measure to tackle anti-social behaviour - could be treated so lightly, particularly over a 50 per cent drop in the maximum custodial sentence." Metropolitan Police Assistant Commissioner Tarique Ghaffur today praised those who lost their lives standing up to yobs. He said: "These people are very brave and have given their lives for the safety of their neighbourhoods and their communities." Today's controversy comes in the wake of rows about alcohol-fuelled violence and yob culture sparked by the mob killing of Cheshire father Garry Newlove. Four teenagers have now been charged with his murder. Cheshire chief constable Peter Fahy later fuelled a national debate by calling for a ban on drinking in the street and an increase in the legal drinking age to 21.16 Aug 2007