Burglary sentences must reflect trauma

Posted By: James

Friday 16th May 2014

Justice Minister Damian Green has said that burglars should face tougher sentences if children were traumatised by a break-in. He urged judges who sentence housebreakers to ensure they take full account of the new Victims' Code, which allows young victims to make their own statements in court about how they were affected by a burglary. Mr Green said that the code, released at the end of last year, would mean burglars were "left in no doubt" about the traumatic impact of their crimes. "Burglary can have severe emotional effects on victims, particularly children. Under our new Victims' Code young people are able to ask to read their personal victim statement out in court, explaining in their own words how the crime has affected them," he told the Evening Standard. "The judge will then take this into account when determining the sentence. It will also mean offenders and the court can be left in no doubt of the full impact of a crime." The code allows children to request the opportunity to read out their own personal statement in court, or record it on video. Their comments can also be handed to the judge on paper to be considered during sentencing.

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