Short jail terms fail to prevent reoffending, says former England and Wales magistrate

The Guardian says criminals in England and Wales are being jailed for short terms that fail to prevent reoffending because of a lack of awareness and availability of community-based sentencing, a leading former magistrate has said.

Rather than jailing or fining someone, magistrates have the alternative of imposing a Community Sentence Treatment Requirement (CSTR), which can be for mental health problems, or alcohol or drug dependency.

However, short custodial terms are being handed out “by default”, according to John Bache, former national chair of the Magistrates Association. They fail to achieve the objectives of sentencing and impact offender’s families, he added, even driving children to follow in their footsteps in some cases.

https://www.theguardian.com/society/2021/oct/05/short-jail-terms-fail-to-prevent-reoffending-says-former-england-and-wales-magistrate