SENTENCING GUIDELINES TOMORROW or COMPUTER SAYS NO

Prior to Sentencing Guidelines being introduced for the first time into English sentencing practices in 2003 officials at the time took particular note of the guidelines in the American state of Michigan.For some years judges there  had been using  a system of points such points being allocated to various factors to be considered in reaching the final sentence.  In England in my early days on the bench we used what was described as structured decision making; we considered the factors involved in the offence and offender and built up a sentence which would correspond to these factors and where necessary add considerations based upon local knowledge and concerns.  In hindsight I can now see that although the purpose of the first Guidelines was ostensibly to eliminate what was known in the NHS as a "post code lottery" where there was inequality of treatments and outcomes with the justice system it seems to be that elimination of local variables was the purpose thus facilitating a system of "national" as opposed to the local justice  espoused by generations of Lord Chancellors and M.P.s.  Even today the cry of "save our local court" or "we must not lose local justice" rings loud from Westminster and local print media. It is a chimera. Increasing appointments of District Judges[M.C.] and DDJs were not based on their local knowledge or associations.  True local justice by local magistrates was not fully under the control of the Ministry of Justice and that for government was no longer tenable.   Local Magistrates` Courts` Committees were abolished in the name of greater efficiency.........it`s always that reason that`s given.  The reality is that centralisation offers greater control. A full history of this development is on Wikipedia. 

The new Sentencing Guideline on Theft to be implemented in February next year  has taken itself to new heights of "sentence by numbers". In practical terms it is barely a whisper away from Michigan`s points system.  Indeed in my inexpert opinion it lends itself to total digitisation; I doubt any competent programmer would find difficulty in producing a logarithm to give a bench or D.J.  instant outcomes at the press of a couple of keys on the keyboard. 

There are those who fail to see this changing face of justice and there are those who see it but don`t recognise it for what it really portends but the most disheartening factor of all is that there are many on and off the bench who do realise what the future holds but remain silent for reasons not always honourable  IMHO of course.