Should Victim Personal Statements affect the sentencing process? What do you think?

The Judiciary of England and Wales' Response to Breaking the Cycle: Effective Punishment, Rehabilitation and Sentencing of Offenders, argues that that: 'The court can of course take the VPS [Victim Personal Statements] into account but must not be bound by it'. Read the comment on page 4 of the response.

In the September issue of Criminal Justice Matters we are planning to include a debating section on whether Victim Personal Statements should play a lesser or greater role in sentencing. If you have an opinion, please let us know by sending a 500 word comment piece to Tammy McGloughlin by Friday 20 May. If you don't currently receive Criminal Justice Matters, why not consider membership of the Centre.