From M Messiter.
SO the States of Jersey police want Asbos (Anti-Social Behaviour Orders) to deal with our troublesome youths. Not surprising when you remember that the States police has to be headed by an officer brought in from the UK, which leads to the tendency to view the English way as the best, even the only way, of doing things. I am very surprised that Senator Ian Le Marquand agrees – I would have expected his experience in the court to have led him to the opposite view.

Asbos have not been a great success in the UK and there is no reason to suppose they would be any more effective here. They are a symptom of the habit the English government has developed of throwing taxpayers’ money at a problem and saying ‘Look, we have solved the problem’, notwithstanding that a few moments’ thought would indicate the action taken is very unlikely to have the desired effect.

The vast majority of children learn civilised behaviour from their parents, backed up by peer-group pressure, in their first half-dozen years. While they get up to their share of mischief, they grow up without causing major problems. A small minority are more troublesome but are easily put back on the right course. It is only a very few, in percentage terms a minute number, who repeatedly cause so much grief that they give the rest a bad name.

They get into trouble serious enough to involve court appearances, but there is presently no sanction available to the court that will get their attention. They pay no heed to binding over orders, curfews or probation orders.

It is unreasonable to suppose they will be stopped in their tracks by Asbos.
What is needed is something that will impinge on their consciousness by spoiling their enjoyment of life such that they will reason their evil deeds are not worth the consequent suffering. Presently, there is only detention in Greenfields (there are other places, but there they are free to come and go as they please, which is not satisfactory) which costs more than sending a child to Eton.

Many of these difficult cases are happy in their criminal ways – making a problem child want to behave in a manner that will fit into society is at least as difficult as making a drunkard wish to remain sober.

I do not know what the answer is but I am sure it is not Asbos.