Did This Judge

[sir.prize]

get it right. 10 months Suspended Sentence? And 8 months jail (out in four).

http://uk.news.yahoo.com/caught-red-handed--brazen-burglars-swig-from-wine-bottles-and-lounge-on-sofa-during-broad-daylight-break-in-104324622.html?vp=1#PVS9sxi

[woofgang]

well don'r forget the loss of any street cred they might ever have had!

[sir.prize]

Street cred in Dudlay!

[FredPuli43]

Depends on what record they'd got. Plausibly correct for a first, in the one case, or a second offender in the second (with strong mitigation)

[chrisgel]

Hardly cat burglars are they?
Would being terminally stupid count as mitigation?
I'm no expert but I would have thought that a quick in and out would be the norm for experienced thieves.

[sir.prize]

Unaware they had just entered a decoy 'capture house' set up by West Midlands Police.

Duh! Duh!

[FredPuli43]

Terminally stupid, is something that counsel do raise in cases where the crime is so stupid in conception and execution that it makes the judge smile, but that's a rare case.

But chrisgel, you are right about proper burglars. Speed is of the essence, as is expertise in picking the target. No dogs in the house or at neighbouring houses, preferable to work in daylight, when people are at work, ideally a cul de sac or quiet street (no passers by) are the kind of things that the pros look out for.

[sandyRoe]

Would the fact that one of the thieves lived in the same street as the victim be viewed as making the crime worse?

[FredPuli43]

Sandy, burgling the house nearby is more evidence of terminal stupidity. You are far more likely to be recognised by neighbours and locals who'd also wonder what you were doing. It doesn't per se make the crime worse, It may smack of desperation, which could be part of mitigation, indeed.

[chrisgel]

Wouldn't you think their suspicions would have been aroused after they had opened the first bottle or two and found that they were full of water?

[FredPuli43]

Blimey, our police are cheapskates ! Not wine but water? By then it was a bit late for suspicions being aroused, but this pair were too stupid to have such thoughts.