Tories put stop to sex offender treatment

[Sir Bandelot]

Who goes into these programs? Most likely, people who seriously WANT to change. OF COURSE such people are going to have a lower recividism rate than those who can't be bothered.

I mean, I'm sure AA has a higher rate of success in reforming alcoholics than say, nothing. But that's because alcoholics who really want to reform mostly get in touch with AA. The rest - don't.

I'm in favour of it if it works, but seriously, how do you teach someone not to be a sex offender? Other than chemical castration, they're going to continue to have those impulses. So the only thing you can hope to teach them is self-restraint and discipline, and really, that requires their cooperation. They need to want to change.

And some probably will want to change, and would voluntarily make use of available treatment. Some might even volunteer for castration...

but the ones who want the treatment won't even have the choice. The only option they have left is what the Tories give them- no treatment, longer prison terms. In the end they are released anyway, maybe worse than when they went in.

[Hydraboss]

And some probably will want to change, and would voluntarily make use of available treatment. Some might even volunteer for castration...

They shouldn't volunteer. Voluntold would make more sense.

but the ones who want the treatment won't even have the choice.

Again, the word choice should not exist in a convict's vocabulary.

The only option they have left is what the Tories give them- no treatment, longer prison terms. In the end they are released anyway, maybe worse than when they went in.

That's why sex offenders that aren't castrated prior to release...shouldn't be released.

Because...(wait for it)...

That's because we all know how sex offenders can't be cured, so why bother?

[Hydraboss]

The questions is, why are we not doing away with the parole system completely? Sentenced to 10 years ---> you serve 10 years. Life means life. This doesn't necessarily mean that you can't get out early for good behavior, it just means that there is no automatic release...no right to serve only a portion of your time.

Exceptions to this would include any life sentence. No getting out at any point. Hence the term life imprisonment. If convicted of, say, second degree murder then judges should be using truth in sentencing...2nd degree=25 years or whatever. 1st degree=bye bye, see you at your funeral.

This would do away with all of the extra credit for time served nonsense. Credit given equals exactly the length of time that you served in pre-trial custody (and wouldn't mean a damn thing to a 1st degree murderer). Sex offenders get a sentence of, lets say, 15 years for rape, but will not get out unless they prove that they have changed (after a minimum of 15 years served, and since they can't change, they won't get out anyway). Zero recividism.

Really, who cares anymore what sentence is handed down following conviction? The numbers don't mean a damn thing and everyone knows it. This fuels public unrest when a murderer or a child rapist is walking around society after a handful of years or less. Time to fix it. Perhaps a Conservative needs to stand up in the House of Commons and make a statement such as:

Consequently, we have decided from now on to stress the protection of society rather than the rehabilitation of individuals.