The announcement that prisoners are now going to ‘receive compensation for a crime that’s been committed’ is a slap in the face for the many thousands of victims of crime who struggle to get a cent of reparation from those very offenders who sit in that prison, says Darroch Ball co-leader of Sensible Sentencing Trust.

“Minister of Corrections Kelvin Davis said that 'it’s the right thing to do'. It’s a shame that he doesn’t make his cabinet colleagues have that same approach when it comes to real victims of crime.”

“In the rare instance that victims end up getting reparation payments from criminals, it is after a long battle through the system and ends up something meaningless like $5 a week.”

“But here we have cabinet signing off on $1.35 million overnight for a bunch of prisoners. It’s the most blatant example of this government caring more about criminals than about the thousands of innocent victims.”

“Those rioters should pay reparations and lose half of their pay-packets for the rest of their lives. It might not touch the sides of the full amount and those prisoners might not get fully compensated – but welcome to our justice system that ordinary kiwi victims are having to deal with every day.”

“This incident highlights the need to change the way compensation and reparation is paid to victims of crime."

“Victims should be paid the full amount of compensation direct from the ‘Proceeds of Crime Fund’ and it would then be the government’s responsibility to ensure the offender pays it back," says Mr Ball.

“This would eliminate the offender intermittently paying pitiful weekly amounts to victims, and victims will be properly compensated, provide for full restoration, and offenders will be made to pay.”
 

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