Should prisoners on community service wear high visibility jackets?

chindit2000	Yep as well as chains shackles and there should be a "gang" boss armed with a cattle prod and a pump action! By the way the jeering by the public is good and we should bring back the stocks!

INDIE FIVE	Yes they should wear a high vis jacket as part of the punishment. BUT, they should not be subjected to any mental or physical abuse from other members of the public either. We are not Philistines, we are supposed to be civilised, and any member of the public that abuses them should be prosecuted and also made to wear a high vis jacket.

Foghorn	The danger of this is that measures such as these to "shame" offenders backfire on society as the offender takes unbrage at being so exposed that he/she develops a chip on their shoulder and takes umbrage against society as a whole. The risk of assault, not only to the offenders but also to the probation staff escorting them will be seriously exacerbated. Most people who end up on community service are either first or second-time offenders who have committed minor offences. There are exceptions, of course, More importantly, many of them already have a palsied view of society and authority, tend to be selfish, unthinking and not quite of the IQ of Einstein. In the case of people who have committed minor offences, one would be using a sledgehammer to crack a nut, and in the case of the more hardened types, they already do not give a damn, so the opprobrium of society would be wasted. Another point is that there are many members of society who are not offenders who have a poor view of the Law and of its enforcement officers. Persons guarding labelled offenders in the community could become the targets of abuse or worse from these types. There is no short-term solution to the problem of minor crime and anti-social behaviour. What is needed is a long-term campaign from Government to instil back to people that they have responsibilities as well as rights, and that access to rights outside of basic feeding, shelter and clothing is dependent upon their performing their obligations, such as working for a living (or at least applying for jobs) and behaving in a way that does not upset or disturb the rest of society. The type of behaviour that one witnesses on, for example, the "Tricia" show indicates the depth to which society has sunk, and the fact that these horrible people have the neck to behave in such a way in front of a national TV audience is not a good sign. Offenders should be punished, persistent offenders should be isolated so that they cannot annoy us normal folk. It has taken 2 generations for us to sink to this level - it will take at least 10 years of vigourous social eduation to restore the balance in favour of the law-abiding.

Chris F	Plus a ball and chain. Seriously, the stocks would be a hoot. They would provide a much-needed answer to crimes of violence and, a couple of well-aimed tomatoes and such may stop the same people from being continually anti-social and ruining other people's lives. Criminals are just laughing at the present system of - smack his hand because he has had a bad life. My real opinion: Support the victim and punish the criminal.

warrior	Why not? Its easier to see the mass wearing your cheap selections.

Aberdeen Tyke	Yes, i think that they should. Jeering is all part of the re-integration inot society. Whats the alternative? An anger management course at Disneyland. Britain did that 10 years ago and it didn't work. Serious offenders should be stark naked apart from the high-vis.

Taf	No, I don't think so. I thought the purpose of community service was just that, not too humiliate them. You may as well bring stocks back and throw tomatoes at people.

Peace Man	The uk has gone totally nanny state crazy and resolved what ? I dont know why you sport that hideous flag for a country which is well and truly down the pan in everything from economic mayhem knife crime gang culture dog dirt on footpaths unemployment housing nhs epidemic alcoholism and endless numbers of other irreversible problems. It is over. Get used to it. There is NO great britain anymore. Finished. Falk. Get with the program. TAX COLLECTING CAPITALISTS are the criminals. The payers are the community servants. To their 'community' of fraud war greed and corruption.

paul_601	Think it's just to make people stand out and embarras them. I've done community service before and they should just make sure you do what you have to do instead of trying to make you stand out. Whwn I was doing it a few years ago I got talking to an old lady who asked what I was doing and I said community work and she said for the Princes Trust and I said yeah. She thought it was good seeing young people doing stuff like that. If I had a orange vest on saying that she probably would have been scared I was going to do something to her which I wouldn't. I think there is some rule that they have to try and keep prisoners out of the view of the public as much as possible so it isn't fair that somebody just doing community service should be made to stand out. Sad taht people would jeer people just for doing community service. Do they ever think it could be their father/brother/son. You can get community service easy enough these days.

BRENT P	Difficult one. If it leads to increased public confidence in the criminal justice system, then it is not a bad thing, is it? However, if it is increasing the de-humanising of offenders and makes them an even greater underclass, will that not lower the chances of rehabilitation and increase the risk of re-offending? I believe studies have shown that de-humanising prisoners only increases re-offending. After all, there must have been a reason why Elizabeth Fry and all the great prison reformers of the 18th and 19th centuries went to so much trouble! Just my humble opinion. Community Orders are no pushover anyway.

Onestep downfrom God	H.S.E. insist on it. (It's not often anyone has something good to say about the H.S.E., is it?)

Hey there	Would they prefer they go back to black and white stripped jumpers all chained to one another. Please. They wear those bright colors so they don't get hit by passing cars. It's a safety issue for the inmates. Plus, if they run, they are easy to find.

uk kew	high vis jackets plus chain gangs and hard labour is what every criminal deserves. yes i mean everyone.

Mr Sceptic	What is the aim of this? Presumably to make community service more of a punishment. If it then makes young criminals less likely to commit crime, then it's a fine idea. However, there is no evidence that increasing the punishment reduces crime. Most people commit crime assuming they won't get caught - so they don't consider the punishment when they act. I think it will lead to more young offenders defaulting on their community service, being taken back to court and subsequently imprisoned. Not good for them or the taxpayer. If it leads to increased public confidence in the courts, as punishments are made more visible, this is a good thing, but not at the expense of increasing the rate of defaulting.

DT	(1) If they're doing community service, then they're not "prisoners" (2) If you're referring to the reflective jackets that say "Community Service" as opposed to safety jackets as worn by roadside/construction workers, then it's too early to say. I didn't support this idea when it was proposed, but it's in force now. If the result is lots of people refusing to start or continue CSOs due to fear of harassment or abuse, then it might need to be reconsidered. If, on the other hand, the fuss dies down in a few weeks and 95% of offenders get on with it, then it can stay.

Bear	They should be in the stocks,or on a chain gang,with a bit of flogging!

LPW	YES that is part or should be part of the punishment, next time they and other would-be criminals may think twice before they commit any crimes.

Tami	anyone working on or near the roadway should wear bright colored outfits so that they don't get run over by an oncoming vehicles. I know that I have trouble seeing motorcycles/pedestrians while it's raining and I sure don't want to harm anyone . if the prisoners are working, good for them, good for us all, it's much better to work than be stuck in a tiny cell like most prisoners are doing a whole lotta nothing within their prison walls......that helps no one and makes for a whole lotta angry people who get out even worse then they went in.

Julian G	Criminals should be punished, if the high visiblity jackets are cheaper than the orange jackets, then yes. Think about it.

Mood Swings	They have rights just like any other person in society. There are hundreds of people who are political prisoners, and hundreds who have been falsely accused and are innocent. Not

Sam	Maybe they will think twice before they act stupid a second time.

Lurch	Hell yes! There's an old saying "If you can't do the time don't do the crime". Prisoners deserve food and shelter. Nothing more, nothing less.