Thugs that break an ASBO should not go to jail, judges told

The Sentencing Advisory Panel wants even the worst offenders - where imprisonment is "unavoidable" - to have their maximum jail term cut to just a year.

Opponents said the move sent out entirely the wrong message at a time of public horror over the killing of Garry Newlove in Warrington.

They said that when a father can be beaten to death for confronting a teenage gang, sentences should be toughened rather than weakened.

The panel, which reports to Lord Chief Justice Lord Phillips, wants similarly lenient treatment for adults who flout Anti Social Behaviour Orders.

They said the maximum sentence for over-18s should be slashed from five years to only two, dramatically undermining use of the orders as a deterrent.

The panel's members, who include senior judges, added that even if the thugs' actions caused "alarm or distress" - the threshold for custody - a community sentence could still be given.

Shadow home secretary David Davis said: "The public will be dismayed that breaches of Asbos - the Government's flagship measure to tackle antisocial behaviour - could be treated so lightly, particularly over a 50 per cent drop in the maximum custodial sentence.

"As well as addressing the causes of crime like family breakdown and addiction, the Government must also tackle crime itself. This means enforcing the sanctions that already exist.

"At a time when drink-fuelled anti-social behaviour is literally destroying the lives of so many innocent people in our towns and communities this would be an insult to the public and contribute to an utter failure to protect the public."

The proposals, which have dismayed the Home Office, are the first guidelines on how the courts should deal with breaches of Asbos.

The panel said advice for judges and magistrates was needed as half of Asbos are breached.

On adults, who currently face five years in jail, the panel said 'breach of an Asbo will normally be serious enough to warrant the imposition of a comcrossedmunity order'.

It went on: "The panel takes the view that the custodial threshold will normally be crossed where the breach involved harassment, alarm or distress.

"Even where the threshold is a custodial sentence will not be inevitable." Where a breach by an adult involved no harassment, alarm or distress the sentence should range from a fine to a community order.

In cases with a lesser degree of harassment, alarm or distress - which are aggravating factors - the punishment should range from a community order to 26 weeks in jail.

When there was a serious level of harassment it should be from 26 weeks to two years - three years less than they could currently receive.

The advice adds: "In most cases of breach by a young offender, the appropriate sentence will be a community order."

Roy Rudham, chairman of the National Neighbourhood Watch Association, said of the recommendations: "It is sending out the wrong message and is just an excuse to reduce the prison population because of overcrowding.

"We know Asbos to some lads are a badge of honour and we should be sending out a much tougher signal, especially at a time when we are having a debate over the father killed in Warrington."

The panel's paper is open to consultation before being handed to the Sentencing Guidelines Council. The council will consider the proposals before issuing formal guidance to judges.

A Home Office spokesman said: "We will feed into the independent consultation in due course. There are no plans to change the sentencing provisions for Asbos."

Conmen stay free too

Con artists who trick the elderly out of cash or keepsakes could be dealt with by community penalties instead of prison.

The Sentencing Advisory Panel has recommended softer treatment for first-time offenders.

It said this would apply in cases where the thieves conned a pensioner out of a treasured possession such as a family heirloom.

The longest jail sentence should be 18 months, they said, compared with the maximum sentence for fraud of seven years.

David Green, of the think-tank Civitas, said community punishments were inadequate. "To choose a victim because they are vulnerable is an act of extreme unkindness and a very low type of human behaviour," he added. "I fail to see the logic in seeking to limit the punishment for such an act."

In a consultation document, the Government panel said frauds of less than £5,000 would normally be dealt with by a fine or a community order.