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Criminals who skip sentencing will face solitary confinement or lose social visits
BBC • • world
Key Points:
- Judges in England and Wales will gain enhanced powers to block prison visits and confine offenders to their cells for up to three weeks if they refuse to face victims' families during sentencing, starting next year.
- These new sanctions build on existing laws that penalize offenders for contempt of court if they skip sentencing, aiming to ensure criminals cannot avoid facing justice.
- The Ministry of Justice and victims' families argue these measures will rebalance power in the justice system and acknowledge the emotional impact on victims when offenders refuse to attend sentencing.
- Critics, including the Prison Reform Trust, caution that the sanctions may unfairly punish prisoners' relatives and question whether the measures will effectively increase attendance at sentencing.
- The announcement has been welcomed by the Victims' Commissioner, highlighting it as a response to persistent efforts by victims' families to hold offenders accountable in court.
