The Government has announced the launch of a review into the way in which cautions are used by the police, in the wake of concerns that they are being used too readily.
There are two types of caution available at present for adults – simple cautions and conditional cautions:
- A simple caution is an out of court disposal given by the police to adult criminals when specified criteria are met. It is designed to be used for low-level offending.
- A conditional caution is an out of court disposal with set conditions attached to it with which the offender must comply. If an offender fails without reasonable excuse to comply with the conditions attached to a conditional caution he or she may be prosecuted for the offence for which the conditional caution was originally given.
The review will focus on the use of cautions for repeat offenders and for those who commit serious crimes. In particular, it will examine:
- existing guidance and practice relating to the use of simple cautions;
- whether there are some offence types for which the use of simple cautions is generally inappropriate – and if so, what procedures should be adopted;
- the reasons why multiple cautions are given to some criminals;
- the difference in the use of cautions by different police forces and whether increased scrutiny is needed to ensure they are used consistently; and
- the impact on individuals of accepting a caution including any potential impact on future employment.
The review is due to be completed by the end of May.
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