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Straw takes 'full responsibility' for errors
4 Jun 2009Justice Secretary Jack Straw said today he took "full responsibility" for the probation service failings that left Dano Sonnex free to kill.
He has twice met and apologised to the families of the two brilliant French students who fell victim to Sonnex and his co-defendant Nigel Farmer.
Mr Straw admitted that Sonnex "could and should" have been in custody at the time he committed the horrific murders.
He said: "In relation to the failings of the probation service, I take full responsibility as Secretary of State. They were unacceptable and had tragic consequences.
"Whilst risk can never be eliminated entirely and the management of chaotic offenders is inherently very difficult, there is clear evidence of poor judgment and failures to act promptly by the agencies responsible for managing Dano Sonnex."
Mr Straw condemned the crimes as "the most appalling, sadistic, and gratuitous murders".
He said: "The direct responsibility for these killings must lie - as the jury found - with the criminals Sonnex and Farmer.
"But it is also the case that Sonnex could and should have been in custody at the time he committed these murders.
"It was the consequence of very serious failures across the criminal justice system that he had not been arrested and incarcerated some weeks before.
"It is because of these failings that I have met the families of the two victims on two occasions and apologised to them for the failings which led to Dano Sonnex being free at the time of the murders."
Reader views (2)
When Gordon Brown talks about "getting on with the job" he presumably means "running the country". To me, this total and terrible bungling is just another symptom of the overall lack of this Government's ability to carry out efficiently even the most basic tasks. It makes Jack Straw look incompetent, yet I have seen little talk about him during the current political mayhem.
Perhaps Mr. Straw has been lucky in being lost among the welter of major political news of a sensational nature.
- Neil Munday, Torquay, England, 06/06/2009 13:02
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"In relation to the failings of the probation service, I take full responsibility as Secretary of State. They were unacceptable and had tragic consequences."
Fine words.
Here's some that got missed off the end: "I therefore resign".
- Austen, London, 04/06/2009 16:37
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