This would be similar to the ‘Swift and
Certain’ (SAC) Programmes that are being used in around 20 States across
America and which are dramatically reducing breach rates and reoffending.
“Many prolific offenders are refusing to take
their punishment and rehabilitation seriously and are getting away with
it,” said Edward Boyd, editor of the Sentences in the Community report.
“What we have found in the United States is that
the consequence of a day or two in prison shows offenders that they have to
comply and means they take more responsibility.
“This approach is slashing reoffending rates as
offenders realise they can’t get away with breaking the rules. This new
idea offers the Government an opportunity to restore faith in community
punishments.”
The
CSJ says sentences in the community have been undermined because authorities
have a “lackadaisical approach” towards punishing breaches. The
average breach hearing is usually not heard for several weeks.
Figures obtained by the CSJ also reveal there are
unacceptable delays in some community sentences starting. The average wait
between being sentenced and starting an accredited programme was as long as
five months in some parts of the country, and two months on average.
The
intervention designed to tackle drug use – the drug rehabilitation
requirement (DRR) – has the highest rate of reoffending, with 56 per cent
of offenders caught committing crime within a year.
The
requirement, the CSJ found, does little to encourage recovery from drug
addiction and is regularly ‘gamed’ by offenders. Many treatment
providers use ‘scheduled’ rather than ‘randomised’ drug
testing which offenders can manipulate simply by managing the timing of their
drug use to avoid detection (many class A drugs only stay in the system for two
to three days).
The
CSJ heard that DRRs have a “perverse” approach where offenders are
more likely to be sanctioned for turning up late for sessions than testing
positive for class A drugs.
The
report also recommends that new probation providers should inform magistrates
of the outcomes of sentences in the community so that they can develop a
greater awareness of which interventions are effective at rehabilitating
offenders. It also says that courts should do more to include families in
rehabilitation efforts.