'Each class A drug addict costs society over three quarters of a million pounds, a judge reminded one heroin user.
Judge Stephen QC said some would describe people like Ashley Blower, 31, of Maesteg, as parasites.
"You don't work, you steal from other people, spending your benefits on drugs and obtaining additional money you need from wholesale shoplifting," he told him.
"People may be interested to know that the Ministry of Justice published figures recently indicating how much it costs society to look after a class A addict and the cost was £800,000 for each one."
Blower had been cleared by a jury of possessing heroin with intent but convicted of possession. He was sentanced to 18 months' supervision with attendance on a substance abuse program and an enhanced thinking course. He spent 259 days in custody awaiting trial, during which time he said he has been drug free.'
This story was printed in Monday July 7th edition of The South Wales Echo. I decided to highlight it here to see what other people thought of it.
1 comment:
Ashley Blower was committing crime to support his drug use and in so doing was harming other people. IF he was supporting his use by shoplifting then his actions will have harmed other people, many small shops can be put out of business by persistent theft.
BUT Comments aimed at dehumanising Defendants, particularly drug using Defendants are quite common in the Criminal Justice System, the media carry on the tradition an example is the TV campaign “Rat on a Rat”
If you can create the illusion that the person in the dock is some how sub-human and their problems self inflicted it is much easier to ignore their actual needs and feelings and to the need to find a solution to their issues which works.
We chose to deal with addicts differently we are happy to allow alcohol and tobacco addicts access to cheap and available drugs without fear of the law and we do not create an environment where the only way that many can support their addiction is by crime. We do not adopt this approach with heroin users. We continue to criminalise them ignore their needs and deny them access to prescribed heroin
If we accept that heroin addiction is a disease for which there is an overwhelming need to take the drug then heroin users will buy street gear and will find the money to do it until we address their needs in an intelligent way.
I suspect that the Judge disagreed with the Jury’s Not Guilty verdict on the Intent and was pissed off that he/she was unable to impose a lengthy prison sentence.
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