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Chris Huhne and Vicky Pryce jailed for eight months

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  1. #21

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    so, non-violent first offences should be non-custodial? Bernie Madoff should have been given community service then?
    I've always felt that using extreme examples in debates is pretty weak. Anyway, I don't think Bernie Madoff should have been given life in prison either.

    People are really getting their priorities messed up here.

  2. #22

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    Quote Originally Posted by INXS:
    I completely understand. What they did was wrong and should be punished. Imprisonment is not the answer.
    Dude, they committed a serious offence - perverting the course of justice isn't something to be taken lightly. They knew the risks.

    Guardian article shows what the normal penalties for perverting the course of justice is:

    http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2013/ma...sentence-crime
    Last edited by pin; 12-03-2013 at 11:04 AM.

  3. #23

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    They knew they could get away with it and would have done. As does every taxi and minibus driver in this town. It's never pretty when co-conspirators fall out though. 2 months under lock and key is pretty reasonable.

    dear giant likes this.

  4. #24

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    Quote Originally Posted by INXS:
    People lose their licences for going a couple of miles an hour over the limit when boy racers who know where all the cameras are drive like loonys and get away with it.
    Not exactly true. A "couple of miles" over the speed limit means you get 3 points on your licence (or 4 points if you're significantly over and/or fail to respond). You lose your licence at 12 points. So losing your licence just for speeding is for repeated speeding offences. Anyone with any common sense who gets points on their licence makes sure they stay under the speed limit so they don't lose their licence by getting more points! It's hardly rocket science.

    As for knowing where the cameras are, yes, most locals know where the cameras are in their area and which are actually working. But there are plenty of unmarked police cars out there tracking speeding as well as the notorious speed traps (that everyone considers revenue generators) nd now of course speed cameras that monitor average speed over long stretches of road (such as on the A13, a notorious "race track" once it gets into Essex).

    Perhaps the people you mix with think it's "socially acceptable" to give their points to someone else to avoid losing a licence but in my own experience, with 20+ years driving experience in the UK, it most definitely isn't socially acceptable. In fact, once someone hits 8-9 points, people tend to wonder what their problem is and they lose a significant amount of respect.
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  5. #25

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    I think everyone misses the point here.

    Perhaps it's because I spent too much time in the social sector in Britain, I don't know.

    Prison is supposed to be the last resort.

    It has been shown time and again not to be effective as a deterrent.

    It is hugely expensive and inmates are often subject to inhumane conditions due to chronic overcrowding.

    Who can argue that the community would not have greater benefited from an unpaid work order and fines?


  6. #26

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    Don't know about that. Being next into the prison showers would sure deter me!


  7. #27

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    Quote Originally Posted by INXS:
    I think everyone misses the point here.
    I think you are missing the point.
    Prison is supposed to be the last resort.
    And in this case, it was.
    He did the crime (speeding), got caught and instead of paying the fines as you should, decided to tinker around with the justice system. As a cabinet minister, thats pretty dispicable. He deserves what he got.
    Last edited by HowardCoombs; 12-03-2013 at 12:10 PM.

  8. #28

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    CPS information on perverting course of justice, including sentencing guidelines:

    http://www.cps.gov.uk/legal/s_to_u/s...se_of_justice/


  9. #29

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    Quote Originally Posted by INXS:
    I think everyone misses the point here.

    Perhaps it's because I spent too much time in the social sector in Britain, I don't know.

    Prison is supposed to be the last resort.

    It has been shown time and again not to be effective as a deterrent.

    It is hugely expensive and inmates are often subject to inhumane conditions due to chronic overcrowding.

    Who can argue that the community would not have greater benefited from an unpaid work order and fines?
    I agree with most of what you have said today. But I also understand that folks like these will end up in a minimum security prison. a mate of mine in Australia got jailed for speeding fines, they put him up at Morwell prison in Victoria. He was allowed outside the prison grounds during the day, providing he came back by muster/curfew all was good. Heck he was even allowed conjugal visits. They aren't going to send this pair to a high security prison, nor will they end up in aH division cell block.

    They will be sent to Prison liteTM.....

    Personally the punishment above is still a bit extreme, a drug f*cked gen Y who glasses somebody at the pub, causing neurological damage and permanent disfigurement to their victim, would have only got an 18 month suspended sentence and community service for a first offence...



    I do agree though that the paper pushing academics of today hold a lot to answer for when it comes to public safety and the very light sentencing/punishment that VERY violent offenders receive via the courts, the law has been very much an ASS in regard to drunken/drug related violence and done sweet f ck all about keeping the city streets safe ( NYC seems to have cleaned its act up and got tough on crime hats off to them ) in majority of our socially decaying western cities...

    Nice to know that HK, Japan and Singapore have dynamite Grievous Bodily Harm laws, which keep things relatively safe in those locations ( culture applies also ) IMHO.
    Last edited by Skyhook; 12-03-2013 at 12:41 PM.

  10. #30

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    Quote Originally Posted by INXS:
    Yes. I know police officers who've done it as well.

    It's becoming more widely known that speed cameras are extremely unpopular and often are not effective. People lose their licences for going a couple of miles an hour over the limit when boy racers who know where all the cameras are drive like loonys and get away with it.
    Then it's clearly ok to speed and lie to the police. I wonder why Chris and Vicky didn't say this to the judge. God bless them, these two wonderful people.
    TheBrit, dear giant and hullexile like this.

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