This in from the police, in their own words. Ed
In 2012, police in Hampshire and the Isle of Wight used community resolutions more than 3,200 times.
This equates to around nine per cent of all total solved crime during that time.
Jo Rowland is head of Hampshire Constabulary’s Criminal Justice Department: She said:
“We take our responsibilities for dealing with crime very seriously and will always strive to use the most appropriate outcome in consultation with the victim.
“The victim is at the heart of everything we do and while community resolutions provide a cost effective solution to most minor crimes the interests of justice and protecting our communities from harm will always remain our priority.
“Community resolutions are not about letting people off but finding a common sense solution to some low-level issues. Some cases can be more complex but we will always take into consideration factors including the impact on the victim and whether it this is the offender’s first offence.
“We monitor the use of community resolutions on a daily basis and Hampshire Constabulary is the first force in the country to develop a scrutiny panel which involves the Crown Prosecution Service and magistrates to oversee their use.
“We are confident that the right resolution is applied in the majority of cases and where a resolution is deemed inappropriate immediate action is taken.”
Police and Crime Commissioner for Hampshire Simon Hayes said:
“The use of restorative justice features prominently within my Police and Crime Plan and in Hampshire we want to build upon this method of disposal. It is my view that restorative justice can provide a positive outcome if used appropriately and in the right circumstances. It gives the victim some control in deciding the outcome for the crime committed against them and allows police officers to use discretion; it also prevents the first time offender from being unnecessarily criminalised for low level offences.
“Police officers work to strict guidelines when applying the use of restorative justice and when used in the right circumstances, it reduces bureaucracy and frees up valuable time for police officers to deal with more serious incidents.”
Image: Aidan Jones under CC BY 2.0
