Warning - may contain spin.
CityCyclingEdinburgh Forum » Debate!
"A NEW compensation scheme for victims of crime amounts to a tax on motorists"
(4 posts)-
Posted 12 years ago #
-
I suppose it would be churlish to point out that (a) speeding offences are not victimless and (b) motorists will only be hit to the extent that they commit crimes. There's a simple way to avoid both fines and compensation payments.
Posted 12 years ago # -
I suppose they would argue that a speeding case in which there was a victim would result in a conviction for a different offence (causing injury / death due to ...) as opposed to 'simple' speeding offences.
I have to admit, personally, that I find it slightly weird. To whom is the victim surcharge being paid in a speeding case?
If the idea is to further discourage speeding, that could be done simply enough by increasing the actual fine by a corresponding amount, perhaps ring-fencing this extra money to be paid out to victims in general (or fund preventative efforts, such as more speed traps).
I wonder, are the actual fines controlled by Westminster while the SG has devolved power over the victim compensation rig?
Posted 12 years ago # -
The surcharge would go into a pot from which victims of crime would be paid. There's no suggestion that the offender would be paying money directly to their victim. Someone in the article confuses this proposal with existing arrangements for judges to impose an order for offenders to make reparation payments to their victim. Anyway, it's a very narrow view of "victims" that it only includes those directly affected.
Their whine is, "why should motorists pay victims when motorists don't have victims". My reply would be, "you're paying because all criminals are being made to pay and you're a criminal. And anyway, your crime does have victims. All those people who can't use their community as well as they should, because of people like you, are your victims."
Posted 12 years ago #
Reply
You must log in to post.
posts
