Principal Judge wants community service for minor cases

The Principal Judge Justice Yorokamu Bamwine has directed judicial officers across the country to issue community service sentences to offenders with minor cases to avoid overcrowding in prisons.

 

“You should desist from being conservative; embrace new reforms in the criminal justice system in order to dispense fair justice. Reforming offenders should be our major objective in sentencing rather than,” Bamwine said.

 

He made the remarks at the opening of the magistrates and prosecutors training on community service at Metropole hotel in Kampala on May 25, 2012.

 

Bamwine said community service as a sentence blends punishment with rehabilitation of offenders. It punishes with the aim of reforming offenders

 

“As magistrates you have the discretion to decide on sentencing option to award an offender. A person who commits a serious offence should be put where they belong,” Bamwine said.

 

He however added that if one commits a minor offence and meets the requirements for community service should be given a chance to benefit from a community service order.

 

Bamwine said it is unfortunate that some judicial officers and prosecutors believe so much in imprisonment to extent of sometimes even refusing to give bail to deserving people which has highly contributed to crowding in prisons.

 

He added that while still Chairperson of National Community Services Committee, observed that districts with active and innovative magistrates and prosecutors, community service was equally vibrant saying that its success highly depends on the attitude of magistrates.

 

The chairperson of the National Community Services Committee Justice Flavia Senoga stressed that they are working in conjunction with the ministry of public service increase on the number of probation officers.

 

“In the past there have been challenges with supervision and follow up of community service orders issued and getting feedback from the placement institutions due to inadequate staffing. But a restructuring proposal has been approved by the line ministries to have a community service officer at every District Court,” Senoga said.

 

She said in order to enhance rehabilitation of offenders, projects like tree planting and brick making have been set up in various districts to equip offenders with much needed skills that can be translated into employment upon completion of the sentence.

 

The training which was attended by magistrates, prosecutors, delegation of probation service officers  from neighboring Kenya among others was organized under the theme; “Community service implementation: so much done, much more desired”