In your opinion are Judges harsh enough?
Posted by: anna
1st Jun 2011 07:37pm
With the latest robbery gone wrong AND a Policeman shot will there be a smack on the wrist? My opinion is bring back hanging, we need to make evil behaviour non-acceptable, cat o' nine tails is good, making an example of, or just bring Sheriff Joe Arpaio from Arizona here & truly pull criminals into gear! Judges, from what I read in the paper & online are NOT HARSH enough. If I were a judge, I would take each & everyone to task, I also believe in deportation! Life is getting pretty sad in Australia, need to clean up the criminals!
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Comments 33
kfactor
I find the justice system (for lack of a better word) only protects the guilty. There is a real need for harsher penalties, and the maxium time given. I'm so sick of hearing that criminals i.e. rapists and murderers get 3 -5 years but will be out by christmas! There doesn't seem to be anyone out there willing to actually act and make the statement that crime of any kind is unacceptable!! For those who have committed horrific acts and there is no shadow of doubt - bring back capital punishment.
anna
Totally agree with you on Capital Punishment! A term to mean a term. Hanging should be brought back in also. Give the baddies a wake up call, put some of us women on the bench, come hell or high water, they will front us just once!
Anonymous
the problem with the death sentence is that judges dont always get it rite. cn u imagine hanging some1 only to realise that that person was actually innocent or had been framed for the crime!
Uncle Ducky
Australian Law System 3 Very simple things.
Absolute joke
Govenment makes money from it
Our law system makes the innocent guilty and the guilty innocent.
Main thing is if our politicians had to go through the system you would see how quickly our laws would change.
Nefertari
Judges are definitely NOT harsh enough on criminals and the sentences they dish out are just ludicrous....such as a recent case where a man convicted of a crime was sentenced to 9 years in jail but will be eligible for parole after serving just three of those years! Where is the justice in that? Our whole legal system is a joke!
stewy57
It seems everyone has the same opinion, the justice system sucks. And with good reason, the justice system is supposed to mete out justice according to the wishes of the people. I do not see that happening here. The word justice is supposed to mean the truth, right. Not how can we judges let a criminal off because of some ridiculous technicality and blame the result on police, government or upbringing.
It seems that judges and magistrates have totally lost the plot, its not hard to see when most of them come from the side of defending the criminals in the first place. They already have a bent on letting crooks off. They can now actually do it and to hell with us the public.
blondie72
This comment was removed because the moderators found it broke the house rules.
anna
I have just watched the situation with Damian Leeding on 60 minutes. The wife speaking & realising what a life she has ahead bringing 2 babies up. Then the other former policeman relaying what he went through, NOW I BELIEVE AN EYE FOR AN EYE!! The Police should be protected & the judges need intestinal fortitude in their sentencing.
kfactor
I grew up with my father in the police. He retired after 36 years as inspector first class. During my youth we all had a very healthy respect for the police and what they stood for. I was no angel, and many a time I was met at the door after curfew to be breathalysed. The main difference with the youth today is that they are well aware of their rites, and it seems everyone can film a crime, but not come forward to help the victim. To say that we have any sort of legal system in this day and age is an absolute joke. These crimals have more rites than anybody, and the judges especially with the younger ones seem to just give them a slap on the wrist and told not to do it again. In my view, if you have to face the judical system more than once, depending on the crime, then be prepared to face some jail time. And I don't mean just a couple of months, if you are a repeat offender then the full sentence should be enforced. Unfortunately no judge wants to be the one. And to bring back capital punishment would hopefully deter repeat offenders. The other aspect is one of mental capacity - give me a break! There are more people who's lives have been affected that don't go out and hurt others. Please someone step up to the plate and give justice for the victim and their families instead of to the criminal.
anna
Well said, totally agree!
kfactor
I find that watching the news and seeing and hearing about these miscreants who are only focused on being disruptive and damaging personal property is just completely out of hand! We should all be taught tolerance, respect, and understanding. Instead I have found that todays youth are illiterate, ignorant, and disrespectful. These ones who drink and drive and cause harm to innocent people should never be allowed back on the roads. Judges need to embrace the notion of penalty. Do the crime be prepared to do the time!! I want my family and others to be able to walk down the street and not fear being shot, abducted, or killed. I honestly believe that until a judges' family, or political family are hurt by these mongrels, the law is not going to change.
anna
Totally agreed. When the smack on the butt went out the disrespect came in! Nobody has to bash to get the point over, but be spoken to & realise what is right & wrong. When this is not taken in a good smack never hurt anybody. So all lousy excuses have gone out the window. If judges cannot stand their ground & give a stern sentence, give the job up. I have never seen so much disrespect about.
Mazzs1
Totally agree with you on this one. There is no deterrant from our courts, instead of handing out the slap on the wrist or minimal sentences, magistrates/judges should be handing out maximums. And just because someone had a rough/tough upbringing that is no excuse to do ANY crime.
Banning of guns did sweet f a, criminals are still using them and always will, it just created a stronger black market.
Fisho
Whilst I do not advocate capital punishment, it is now obvious that our judicial system does not work ....... that being, it has been made that complicated that there is to many ways for the lawyers to manipulate the outcome so much so that the judges make decisions that in no way reflect the crime. Zero tolerance and mandatory sentencing levels should be introduced, so if found guilty the judge is not required to set a sentence based on his opinion of severity. In addition, I'm sick and tired of hearing the politicians say that we have no room in our gaols and the cost to house them is enormous. Build more gaols and put these ratbags away for so long that they are no longer a danger to society. Life should mean life not 10-15 years!!! Eventually the message will get through to the community as a whole and the crime rates will be slashed. Its not rocket science and its about time the politicians actually decided to act on behalf of the wider community instead of the minority do-gooder groups. The political parties are more concerned about getting one or two votes to hold power from the minorities instead of promoting sweeping changes to the judicial system which would have them elected in to power with a huge majority. How hard is this to understand!!!
anna
Going back quite a few years I remember how stern the law was & it was a good law. The judges were mostly respected & lawyers were not like today. If one did wrong he/she knew they would be punished. I honestly cannot get over somebody maiming/killing another whether it be fight or car crash, nowadays gets NIL. Yes, I agree, lock them up & throw away the key, but the more I think about it, we have got to be tougher, BOOT CAMP's great! In the lockup they still have home comforts, take them away, bare boards, a cover, keep it minimal, they have done wrong, we cannot pander to these mongrels any longer. The do-gooder groups can go jump or hop on the junk & head off to where the boaties came from. The pollies line their pockets, if they were paid for performance they would be in the dole queue.
butcher1
Yep, the courts are far too soft, particularly on repeat offenders. So often you read in the press about someone being found guilty of something like their 5th drink driving offence, and having a very soft and ineffective penalty imposed. Weekend detention, licence cancellation, community service all mean nothing to someone who doesn't give a stuff about those around them on the road, and will rack up the next offence in no time flat. I have a real yearning for the "3 strikes and you're out" approach to justice with big jail time for repeat offenders - knowing that they face serious jail time should be an effective deterrent for a lot of them, and the rest can enjoy theri time in prison.
nina
I agree Anna & a couple of other people this country has gone to hell in a hand basket the law is set up for the wrong doers even when when the evidence is so over whelming they still get off or a miniscule sentence that's a slap in the face for the victim or their family! The ploice try hard to catch these bastards & they get kicked in the teeth as well & as far as these boat people turn em round don't even bring them to land turn em round & send them back or if they want to come here send them to towns that are dwindling in numbers or into the out back we cannot house them in the cities we just don't have the room & as far as giving them thousands of dollars plus in some cases free accomodation our poor & down trodden, pensioners get jack it's not right charity begins at home feed & house our own before letting these cue jumpers in. The muslims think we are crap & we don't deserve to live & they want to turn Australia into a muslim state & they have said so on national tv! We car'nt even have Christmas tree's decorated in Sydney because it offends some people & changing nursery rhymes so as not to offend some races of people eg Bar bar black sheep is now bar bar mulit coloured or rainbow or something sheep!AAGGGGG
nina
This comment was removed because the moderators found it broke the house rules.
anna
"Thanks to all for getting on the bandwagon" Nina, boat people give money to boat/junk owners to bring them here, so why not pay their own way here in Aus.? They are truly looked after, TONS BETTER THAN OUR BATTLERS! *We CAN have Christmas Trees, we had them before they came to the Country, if they do not like us buzz off to another Country, I do NOT care.* If I were a Judge & ALSO Julia Gillard watch out Australia! When in a position like julia is, she should LISTEN to her constituents & LISTEN CAREFULLY to what they are SAYING! We still have voting rights for now! [needs to make the most of it as she will be voted out at next election] What a job to clean the place up!
heeleen
I do not understand what the courts and the judges are thinking when they let the same reoffenders out on bail yet again, my daughter and her partner are police officers and they are constantly getting frustated in how much effort they spend arresting people and getting them to court where they are told they are naughty things and let go , not to mention all the crap they have to put up from criminals.
what does it take to stop these people from constantly reoffending. there is a real lack of respect for authority, family, and just people in general, maybe a bit more disipline in school, a bit more love, religion, and respect in general for everyone.
19chris51
I have just read everthing on this page, and I agree with all of it, I just wonder how we can change the way society is,the Justice system(ha!ha!ha!)what justice, often the victim is not served proper justice, and so becomes a Victim again, it is pathetic, I think the justice system is LAUGHABLE (unfortunitly very sad as well), is it any wonder we have so much crime, also what about the asylm seekers and all the damage they do? they can comit crimes and get away with it as well, it is a joke. WE are a LAUGHING to the world I`m sure!!!!!!!!!!!
Ash
Capital Punishment should be reintroduced, no doubt about it....today criminals have more rights than victims. Everybody is worried about treatment of criminals and their rights and victims are just forgotten. The justice system is a complete joke.
liz
I agree about capital punishment, bring it back. Too bad about the 'rights' of criminals, what about the rights of the victims? And no excuses about a poor child hood, absent father etc. My first husband had a cruel father who beat them all then finally left, but none of them (6 boys 1 girl) turned into criminals. They are all responsible citizens, good fathers themselves and contribute to society. Their mum was an angel who held them together with love and hard work.
Doc
Many of you may not agree but I'm convinced that if capital punishment of some permanent sort is re introduced, criminals will think twice about doing the crime.
I also think that there needs to be some consistency in sentencing.
Too many hard working police are leaving court rooms shaking their heads & disappointed at wasting time trying to uphold the laws.
chips48
I don't think judges are anywhere near harsh enough with their sentencing of criminals, especially here in Hobart, Tasmania. Here they are given a slap on the wrist and told not to be "naughty boys or girls" again. If they do go to gaol, it is for nowhere near long enough, and when they do get there, they live better than most pensioners and the unemployed do, with 3 hot meals a day, the ability to study for nothing if they want to, they can watch TV and have visits from the families, and they have a bed to sleep in every night, which is more than a lot of Australians have. I think it's time we bought back the stocks and giving the cops the right to treat criminals like criminals instead of police be afraid to even give them a tap on the arm in case they are charged with assault. Come on, get real! Enough is enough already!
Bigfoot
How I would love to see harsher penalties for criminals, unfortunately we have soft pollies and too many magistrates and judges who have not had to suffer the terror and misdoings that these guys/girls create. The Minister for Corrections should not only have more prisons built and NO soft prison officers but stop bowing down to the do gooders. Just in case someone doesn't get the point, the prisoners have the LUXURY of TV (Foxtel) computers access, swimming pool, gymnasium and 3 square meals a day AND they get paid. A lot of people outside of prison cannot get just one of those items.
Libbyh
The law is an ass!!! My hubby was involved in road rage - some creep opened the passenger side door of our car, leant in and punched him in the face. The police charged him, but he got off. The magistrate said he could have been gesticulating!! What a joke.....
kezmag
I would love some of these magistrates/judges to work in the emerg dept of public hospitals and then maybe they will think twice about the lenient sentences they hand out. No wonder nurses and policeman burn out and blazzeeeeee. These individuals who present time and time again and ruin peoples lives thru alcohol, drugs and get in their car and drive should be locked up. No room. Who cares? Build more prisons There are laws and yet time and again they get away with it and we at the cold face have to put up with it. To the powers of be out there I hope it is not your wife who needs emerg treatment, but we are to busy with aggressive alcohol intox people to deal with your wife, as we are trying to keep the dept safe.
blondie72
I thought about - and I disagree. There has always been 'riff raff' and bad people, problem is the law hasn't moved with the times and in particular technology and the Justice system is a joke. The world is way over-populated due to modern medicine some more population more crime and poverty which instigates most crime. Also the banning of corpral punishment in schools etc was a major contributor too!
liz
Spare the rod and spoil the child is actually from the Bible. If we looked at the way Jesus told us to live I know the world would be a much better happier and more equitable place. I agree that 'the law is an ass' but judges can only rule within the law. We need a law review and much harsher penalties for offenders. What it stems back to is an upbringing without boundaries, no regard for others and an attitude of 'I'll do as I please and stick the rest of you'. When a society chooses to leave God out of its life then this is the result. Think about it.
anna
I admire all the nursing staff in hospitals, ambo's, police, firies, etc. you see first hand what the judges do NOT. Some of the sights would not be great. The rubbish you have to take from abusive dickheads is sad, when one needs help we all yell for it. I would like to see jobs & life easier for you. Build more prisons but give the perpetrators a flogging before throwing them in there. "Spare the rod & spoil the child!" A saying from many years ago, & it is true!
19chris51
I think our judicial system is now non exsistent (or it might as well be ) I`m not too sure about hanging perheps the electric chair, nor do I think cat o`nine tails is good, but certinally we need better justice, we need to dicourage the behaviour that some members of our society display and live by, yes certinally the death penality, the trouble is we have all these do gooders, how would they be if something horrible happened to a member of th
eir families (some one they cared deeply for) I wonder would they just smack said offender on the wrist.
WAKE UP POLLIES and DO GOODERS
anna
The harsh reality of what the evil doers dish out is somebody gets hurt, maimed or murdered! Time to get harsh back! Do we know what some victims suffer with violence towards them? Until we do something seriously back to perpetrators the violence will get worse & the lily livered judges & parliamentarians will bury their heads still. An eye for an eye! Just lately I have had a chance to talk to & read about victims & injuries, as I said if I were a judge, hell would break loose! Not saying but MEANING!