No soft options (From York Press)

No soft options

8:00am Saturday 2nd February 2013 in Letters By Reader's letter

OVER the past few days, I have read various accounts in the national press of how soft British justice is.

Over the same period, I watched the two-part ITV1 documentary Inside Death Row with Trevor McDonald, where he visited Indiana State Prison in the US and interviewed prisoners.

Although I have misgivings about the death penalty, there are parts of the American justice system that have to be admired. Prisoners who commit horrific crimes are sentenced to life without parole; for multiple crimes they can receive sentences of 100 years or more.

This may seem extreme, but it does guarantee that they will never be able to get out, roam the streets and reoffend; unlike in this country where life can mean only a few years in prison, after which they are released and in many cases commit the same crime again.

Our justice system cares not for the victims but does seem to favour the criminals.

AP Cox, Heath Close, Holgate, York.