www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/law-and-...-awaiting-trial.html

Ken Clarke really needs to get brutal. It is ridiculous that it is costing £2 billion to give FREE accomodation to petty criminals.

I saw with my own eyes how HOMELESS people did petty crime in order to be locked up and fed and watered. This is not the way the system should work - yet courts know what is happening and when these people say they have no fixed address they are remanded even if they steal a packet of sweets. Then it takes up to 6 months to go to court and always at least 3 months - meaning they have already served their max sentence in any case - so there is no punishment even if found guilty.....

The system is totally broken - and with more people being locked up by the crazy people in Magistrates Courts - now facing cuts so they are trying to justify their existence - we are facing yet more overcrowding.

Every person on bail should be reviewed. If they have a fixed address that they have lived at for more than 5 years then they should be released immediately before their trial. In addition if they have never been convicted before they should also be released immediately. This would see thousands of places come free - as the silly Courts have locked up loads of people who should not be in prison and often they will be aquitted or the charges dropped - then they have been locked up wrongly.

If someone is aquitted or has charges dropped after being on REMAND - then as long as they are bail breakers - they should get COMPENSATION for each week of freedom lost costed at the same as it costs to be put in Prison ( £1000 a week ) This would make Magistrates actually look at the bail more closely.

When I was thrown in Prison earlier this year the Police told the court ( lied ) that I was a bail breaker and loads of other things that were patently untrue. Because I had no real legal representation they threw me into prison - at that point it took me 7 weeks to get to talk to a lawyer and 9 weeks to get a hearing to get me out. Which was ridiculous. You can be locked up based on lies from the Police who seem to make it up as they go along. I can well understand the anger of people like MOAT etc. because I found out that I was not an exceptional case. Many people languishing in our prisons on remand are there because of "disputes" with Police - who then use their job to get people locked up as a warning to them or revenge. Makes me feel totally sick thinking about how the Police abuse their powers in the UK. They really are as corrupt as any tinpot third world police force now.

Remanding suspects should only be used to protect the public. The granting of bail is a human right - "Innocent before proven guilty" and should only happen in EXCEPTIONAL circumstances.

We have LESS criminals in 2010 - but busier prisons because we lock up innocent people now.

KEN CLARKE - good luck taking on New Labour's vested interest. We need to be tough on crime and causes of crime - not innocent people.