The Village Pump Soapbox

Soft on Crime

Did you see the CCTV pictures of three youths and a girl attacking a Portuguese man? These youths beat the man to the ground and then kicked him, he received 18 kicks to the head as well as kicks to his abdomen.

Fortunately for him, and them, he was not too seriously injured but he could easily have been killed or maimed. Fortunately also, the CCTV operator was able to follow the culprits and direct the police to them.

The explanation that the youths gave for their actions? They thought the man was a Kosovan! The sentences that they received? The longest sentence for the one deemed to be the worst offender? Two and a half years. He will be free in just over a year. The judge explained that he had given such a severe sentence because of the racist element in the attack. Was that a severe sentence? I don't think so.

In my opinion we need to really crack down on this type of unprovoked gratuitous violence by groups of people attacking a single individual.

Ron Watts