Book Review: Sentencing, Judicial Discretion and Training
| Date | 01 July 1993 |
| Published date | 01 July 1993 |
| DOI | 10.1177/0032258X9306600315 |
| Subject Matter | Book Review |
Book Reviews
SENTENCING, JUDICIA!, DISCRETION AND TRAINING.
Edited by Colin Munro and Martin Wasik. Publisbed by Sweet &
Maxwell. Hardback. Price £55.
Aninteresting book
which
consistsofa collection ofessaysonthesubject
matter by eminentacademics and
members
of the judiciary from both
sidesof theAtlantic, witha contribution
from
anAustralian toprovide an
Antipodean comparison.
The whole question of sentencing has longbeen the cause of critical
comment,
withseeming inequities creatingmediahyperbole andpublic
disquiet. Thediscussions in thisbook,therefore, willproveto beof great
interest to many people, whether involved in the judicial process or
not.The
1987
reforms onsentencing intheUSA- the
American
experience
- provideabackgroundagainst
which
theBritishsituation canbe
viewed,
whilstthe essayon therole of theJudge inthe Diplockcourtsin Northern
Ireland
when
dealing
with
indictable
offences
connected
withthe
emergency
situation, analyses theeffectwhichthe Diplock
system
hashaduponthe
natureof the judicialtask at trial.
An accountof theworkings of the Judicial Studies
Board,
first setup
in
1979,
is provided by the Board's Chairman. This "rare insight"
highlights the perceived need to secure consistency in an approach to
sentencing.
The book was ftrst published in
November,
1992,
and readers will
speculate as to how many of the learned UK contributors have since
reactedto thecriticisms of the Criminal JusticeAct,
1991,
which
occupy
thecolumns of ourdailynewspapers withincreasing, almostmonotonous
regularity!
MITCHELL,IDNTON&TAYLORonCONFISCATION.Publisbed
by Sweet & Maxwell. Hardback. Price £75.
Amuch welcomed dissertation bya team of experienced practitioners on
therapidly
growing
legalprovisions
which
enableoffenders tobedeprived
of the proceeds of theirill-gotten
gains.
"Conftscation is not punitive. Where a defendant beneftts as a
consequence of an act contrary to the law, he shouldnot be permitted to
retainsuchprofits." Thisbasicphilosophy, accelerated bytheinability of
a courtto sustain aforfeiture order madeundertheMisuseof DrugsAct,
1971 (R. v. Cuthbertson, 1981) resulted in the passing of the Drug
Trafftcking Offences Act,
1986,
described as an act designed to make
provision
forthe
recovery
ofthe
proceeds
ofdrug
trafficking.
Subsequently,
Part VIof the CriminalJusticeAct,
1988,
extended thepowersof
wealth
conftscation inrespectofothercrimes, thuscompleting thelaw's
armoury
againstmajorcriminals.
It
is with theapplication of these twopieces of
legislation that thebook is mainly concerned.
Thecontents
include:
anexcellentexposure ofRestraintandCharging
Orders;
procedures in theCrown Court;the enforcement ofconftscation
July 1993 The Police Journal 331
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