Community service is used by the Royal Court and Magistrate’s Court as a direct alternative to custodial sentences. A 480-hour sentence will be seen as the equivalent of a three-year jail term. Last year, offenders did 13,302 hours of community service for charities and non-profit groups, environmental and sporting organisations. Home Affairs Minister Wendy Kinnard has proposed the amendment to the Criminal Justice Law which, if approved, would double the maximum length of community service order, and allow courts other than the Royal Court to review orders placed when people reoffend midway through them. Chief Probation Officer Brian Heath said the law change would not mean longer community service sentences for all offenders, but just that some offenders would find themselves doing community service instead of jail time.
The Heart of Island Life
