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Community Justice Panels - facing up to crime
Community Justice Panels (CJPs) work by personally holding offenders to account for what they have done, giving them the opportunity to apologise to their victims and make amends for the harm they have caused.
The CJP team have had 22 referrals to date, the majority of which have been highly successful, not only helping to keep first time offenders out of the Criminal Justice System but also helping to build bridges within communities.
Sheffield’s first Community Justice Panel saved an A-star GCSE student from getting a criminal record - for shoplifting crisps when his own sandwich was stolen at lunchtime. The teenager, who was caught shoplifting, became the first person to face a panel hearing, which involved meeting the manager of the shop to take responsibility for his actions.
The boy, who was hoping for top grades in his GCSE results in August, was afraid that one irresponsible deed could jeopardise his chances of getting onto his chosen college course. “….I’m just glad I had a chance to sort things out and apologise”, he said.
The manager, who has been victimised in the past by youths in the shop, said: “….Rather than taking their children's side as parents sometimes do, this scheme makes them hear the victim's story, which might get them to stop their kids causing trouble in the future.
“Theft, no matter how small, is a step up from nuisance behaviour and I hope the young man learns his lesson.”
Volunteer worker, Janet Bagshaw, who sat on the panel, thinks that this ground-breaking initiative can be a big success.
“It makes that person face up to what they have done and hopefully represents a turning point in their life, without involving the courts, prison or criminal records.”
Cutting crime
Partners have worked hard to reduce crime in the city. Here are some examples of the work we have done:
- In September 2009 there were over 100 fewer burglaries in the city than in September 2008 (249 compared to 357).
- Partnership funding has been provided for ‘Target Hardening’ which offers additional security following a burglary and has been very well received by customers.
- In addition, Partnership funding was provided for ‘Smartwater’ – a DNA style application which is applied to household goods prone to theft – this has been rolled out in the top 10 burglary hot spots.
- ‘Mocam’ mobile CCTV cameras have also been deployed in burglary and car crime areas.