"A shoplifter convicted for the 175th time was spared a prison sentence after magistrates decided to give her another last chance.Joanne Jones, 31, has faced more than 200 court hearings and served 34 jail terms over the past 16 years, at a cost to the taxpayer of more than £700,000.
But she walked free from the court after Canterbury magistrates decided there was a "chink of light" to suggest she could change – despite the fact that she was on bail when she committed her last offence and is still hooked on heroin."
Time has come. Indeed it arrived 172 convictions ago. This woman is leaving a trail of misery behind her for small businesses and is adding to the prices the rest of us have to pay in the larger supermarkets. If these are her convictions, it is safe to say that her actual offences, the UNdetected ones, will probably run into many tens of thousands.
Jailed 34 times? - What does that mean? - It is quite possible that she will have spent less than 15 months locked up in total!
Under a proper system the time would be long overdue for her to be given 7 years - and preferably in a much tougher setup.
Canterbury deserves a rest. Her 'interests' are now secondary. She is a social menace and should be removed from the population for a very lengthy period.
The point has been reached when we must cease viewing these as 'minor offences'. They are not. They are crimes and she is not being punished for them.
The magistrates are probably in the position where the amount of time they can jail her for is so insignificant - with 50% off for 'good behaviour' and an early release scheme to 'free prison places' that they may as well not bother, so limited are their powers today.
LINK: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/news/news.html?in_article_id=547310&in_page_id=1770
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