Child sex offenders and burglars spared jail despite dozens of previous convictions

File image of a British prison
File image of a British prison

Paedophiles, burglars and sex offenders have been spared prison despite having dozens of previous convictions for the same offence, new figures have revealed.

In one instance, a criminal appeared in court for their 45th burglary offence but avoided a custodial sentence – despite having a total of 315 previous convictions.

Public safety charities warned that the lack of sanctions undermined the work of police officers and was “a slap in the face” for victims.

The data from the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) shows there were nine “career criminals” in 2022 who were let off with a non-custodial sentence despite having been responsible for a catalogue of crimes.

They all avoided an immediate prison sentence and were given alternative punishments such as community service or suspended sentences.

The group included a sex attacker who appeared in court for their sixth occasion relating to sexual assault but was allowed to keep their liberty despite a criminal record with a total of 29 previous offences.

Another person, who was convicted for the fifth time for offences related to internet child abuse content, also avoided jail. They had a total of 24 previous convictions.

An additional sex offender appeared in court for the 20th time for failing to comply with the provisions of the sex offenders’ register but was also not jailed.

The MoJ refused to identify the individuals involved in the cases because it would breach the criminals’ rights under the Data Protection Act.

Another individual came before the courts for their 10th robbery offence and still managed to avoid a custodial sentence despite a criminal record that extended to 34 separate offences.

A persistent criminal who had 56 previous convictions and came before the court for their 27th offence of having a knife still managed to sidestep being sent to prison.

There was one case where a person was brought before the court for breaching an anti-social behaviour order for the 40th time and who had 254 criminal convictions. Despite the catalogue of previous offences the court decided not to jail the individual.

Other criminals who avoided the immediate clang of the prison gates were a joyrider being sentenced for the eighth occasion for stealing cars and a drug offender convicted of their 28th offence in relation to illegal substances.

Criminals ‘let loose’

Rory Geoghegan, founder of the Public Safety Foundation, said: “These damning figures reveal a justice system that, even for the most prolific offenders, enables rather than prevents further offences by convicted criminals.

“The case for substantial prison expansion and tougher supervision should be clear to see when individuals with hundreds of convictions are spared jail despite committing serious offences.

“Failing to send such criminals to prison undermines the hard work of police officers and is a slap in the face for the victims and witnesses who provide evidence in such cases and who, like the rest of us, want to see criminals locked up rather than let loose.”

It comes after Sir Nic Dakin, a justice minister, said short prison terms were more likely to result in making offenders “better criminals” rather than rehabilitating them.

Labour’s forthcoming sentencing review – due to be announced this month – could pave the way for scrapping many short jail terms.

These would be replaced with community punishments geared towards rehabilitation, meaning some low-level criminals would avoid jail.

The review is expected to be headed by David Gauke, the former Tory justice secretary, who has argued that introducing a legal presumption against sentences of under a year and scrapping those under six months could reduce reoffending.

A Ministry of Justice spokesman said: “Sentencing decisions are made by independent judges and they can impose a range of tough requirements including curfews, tags and exclusion zones.

“If offenders do not meet these requirements they can be sent to prison.”