GIVEN present concern about public-order offences and violence on the streets of St Helier, the police and the courts quite obviously require every reasonable means at their disposal to combat unacceptable behaviour.

It is a very well saying that if adequate manpower is used, officers should be able to stamp out street crime or that the courts should use their powers to deter street criminality, but if they must do so with a hand metaphorically tied behind the back, then we are expecting too much of them.

With this in mind, the latest idea advanced by acting police chief David Warcup must be looked at very carefully. He suggests that a UK measure, Asbos – Anti-Social Behaviour Orders – should be added to the range of penalties which Jersey courts have at their disposal.

While it must be emphasised not only that Asbos would be no panacea for all our public-order problems and also that the scale of these problems in our
generally peaceful community is limited compared with UK inner-city levels,
Mr Warcup’s views certainly deserve to be heard and noted. His experience of policing in the UK means that he has seen the Asbo system operating and is well qualified to offer an educated opinion on its value.

He is, in particular, better placed than any Island armchair expert to give the lie to the widespread objection that Asbos are treated by the criminal classes as badges of honour rather than any real impediment to their reprehensible activities.

In reality, an order imposed on a person responsible for anti-social behaviour which bars him or her from an area, premises or category of action is surely of value when it comes to practical policing. A person in breach of Asbo conditions automatically becomes liable to arrest, detention, a fresh court appearance and further punishment. Although this might not be enough to deter the most determined or obtuse of hooligans, it might well be enough to make those on the verge of persistent criminality think twice before acting recklessly.

There is, moreover, a positive element of the Asbo system that is often overlooked. The imposition of an order can be regarded as a last chance and as an alternative to more severe penalties – including custodial sentences which, all too often and very sadly, tend to ingrain criminality rather leading to reform.