Anti Social Behaviour Orders, ASBOs: Your Rights
Anti Social Behaviour Orders (ASBO) were introduced in 1999 as part of the Crime and Disorder Act (1998). These orders have come under criticism due to the age of the offenders being targeted.
What is an Anti Social Behaviour Order?
Anti Social Behaviour Orders are civil sanctions designed to stop certain types of behaviour. The main stipulation of an ASBO is that the offender has caused harm or is likely to cause harm or distress to others. These orders can be placed on children as young as 10 years old and are not criminal offences. Anti Social Behaviour Orders are given by the court and can come with certain restrictions for the offender. An Anti Social Behaviour Order will last for a minimum of two years.Types of Anti Social Behaviour
The remit of what is actually classed as anti social is wide ranging but will usually include:- Vandalism and the dropping of litter
- Dealing drugs and drug use
- Drinking alcohol in the street
- Verbal abuse including hoax telephone calls
- Offensive text messages and phone calls
- Rowdy behaviour; for example playing loud music constantly
Restrictions Included in Anti Social Behaviour Orders
Restrictions applied to the offender can be included in the ASBO. These are designed to ensure that the offender is not able to use the same type of anti social behaviour. These restrictions can include that the offender is restricted from entering a certain geographical location. The orders can also ban offenders from certain activities such as playing loud music during certain hours.ASBOs Can Become Criminal Offences
Although ASBOs are not criminal sanctions they can become so. If the offender breaks the terms of the ASBO then they can be seen to be in breach of the order. Breaking the terms of the Anti Social Behaviour Order is classed as a criminal offence. Breaking the terms of an ASBO can mean the offender can receive up to a five years prison sentence. In effect this does mean that offenders are being sent to prison for acts that were not initially illegal.ASBOS are the Final Warning
Between the introduction of the ASBO in 1999 and December 2007 there was a total 14,972 Anti Social Behaviour Orders placed on offenders. An Anti Social Behaviour Order is usually given as the final resort. Before an ASBO is placed other methods will usually be tried to bring about a solution depending on the offence. These solutions can include mediation, warning letters and Acceptable Behaviour Contracts (ABC). An ABC is a written agreement between offenders and local authorities that the anti social behaviour will not be repeated.Controversy Over Anti Social Behaviour Orders
The civil liberties group Liberty is concerned over the way Anti Social Behaviour Orders are being used. Children as young as 10 years old are being served with ASBOs. Liberty claim that these children are vulnerable and should be given help and support, not ASBOs. Naming and shaming anti social behaviour offenders by the courts will also have a detrimental effect on rehabilitating offenders. The fact that offenders can go to prison for a non illegal offence if the terms of the ASBO are broken is cause for concern.Anti Social Behaviour Case That Wasn’t
A recent case of anti social behaviour was reported where a woman was threatened with eviction from her home. The grounds for the ASBO were nuisance due to loud noises. The anti social behaviour actually turned out to be a man who using violence against his partner including beating her on numerous occasions. This is a case of a criminal offence being treated as anti social behaviour simply because those who reported the matter did not know the true facts.Appealing Against an Anti Social Behaviour Order
One of the biggest threats to civil rights concerning ASBOs is that innocent and vulnerable people are being rounded up with the guilty. Appeals to the court can be made by those accused against the ASBOs. Although the courts basically have the right to decide what is and isn’t anti social behaviour it does not mean that the order will be granted. Appeal reasons can include that the offender’s circumstances have changed since the offence took place. It may also be that the rate of the offence has dropped significantly since the offence was initially reported.Anti Social Behaviour Orders are designed to protect the public from harassment and distress. Two years is the minimum that ASBOs can last for but they can be applied for life. Offenders should be aware that they can appeal against these orders if they think they are unjust.
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Comments...
No offence dmac but as a victim you are bias and seek revenge rather than justice. There fore your opionon is tainted.It a basic arguement in many ways is it genes or enviorment.The evidance says its enviorment more than genes. A child learns to survie in the enviorment they grow up in. Its basic evoloution in a social context.So a child behaves bad you punish them and hope they learn a lesson. An adult behaves bad and thier punshied but as parents ie sociaty we want to brand them for life so that everyone can see hes been a bad boy. Which then affects their enviorment making them worse. So the bad boy becomes a evil boy.Not everyone learnt the things you learnt to make smart decisions and maybe if you learnt the things I learnt you would have a different opionon on what is the cause of crime and how it mght be better managed in a way the doesnt affect our ability to be free thinking individuals.
Justice - 27 January 2012 @ 1:19 PM
JOJO how long is this asbo for? usually you have to appeal the actual asbo nearer the time it was given say within 6wks to 3months. as it has been three years now you would not be able to appeal the whole asbo.
you can however speak to a solicitor with rights to the higher court or a barrister about taking it back to court for a sort of review dur to a change of circumstances say...
(b) Applications to vary/ discharge an ASBO
9. An applicant or respondent may apply under section 1(8) of the
C&DA to the court that made the ASBO for it to be varied or
discharged. A solicitor may self-grant Advocacy Assistance for the
purposes of proceedings to vary or discharge an ASBO, and the
application is to be treated as part of the same case as the original
proceedings, although the additional work may be claimed by way
of a supplemental claim using the same UFN as the main
proceedings. Applications to vary or discharge an ASBO made in
the county court under section 1B(5) of C&DA are not within the
scope of the General Criminal Contract.
10. Applications to vary or discharge an ASBO made in the magistrates’
(criminal) court under section 1C(6) of the C&DA are treated as part
of the original criminal proceedings and funded under the original
Representation Order. As above, additional work may be claimed
by way of a supplemental claim using the same UFN as the original
proceedings.
hope this helps x
ris - 29 November 2011 @ 2:31 PM
dmac- i fully understand where you are coming from however things are not always as it seems.
i have an asbo and whilst i am not condoning my previous asbo, i am not a yob who has no consideration. i never targetted anyone and was never rude or violent to any member of my community. i had an extremely bad upbringing and was failed by appropriate services who were supposed to keep me safe as a child, i have behavioural problems and extreme mental health problems. whilst none of this is an excuse it does go a little into showing why i am the way i am. all i ever did was hang around with mates, the only times i ever shouted or fought or caused a problem was towards the police who DID discriminate against me because of my family. the problems wit asb were rife in my community and i was singled out and made an example of to satisfy the community. i am not excusing anything i have done, it was wrong and i know that and i have publicly apologised off my own back to everyone whom may have been affected. sometimes its not an issue of horribvle youths more of youths that do not understand the effects or repurcussions their behaviour has on a community and because they know no better, they l;earnmt the behaviour from somewhere and so society should be asking themselves where? sometime it is a case of bad communication between society and young people and the stigma all young people recieve even though it is not all young people that behave this way actually its a minority that do. that is why i set up a youth organisation and project targetting the most at risk of or those who were committing crime or asb. the course i set up at 17yrs old helped to get young people off the streets, back into education, keep them out of the criminal justice sytem, get them qualifications and help them to see the impact that their behaviour had on the community and to help them to communicate effectively with the community without anger or violence. most young people were shocked at their findings and extremely remorseful. anti social behaviour as a result dropped by 62% in the months of the course and those after. i have completed all my gcse's and a-levels and was then accepted into ujniversity to do a LAW degree, i missed it as i was again in hospital due to mental health problems where i stayed for 6months subsequantly i missed my slot and have deffered to start next year, i am now helping to run courses to get young people into education employment6 or trqaining ang volunteer a lot of my time, my offending behaviour has ceased
sorry for telling you my life story i am NOT looking for praise o sympathy or understanding at all. i just wanted you to know that every case is not always the same and sometimes people need help aswell and arent just horrible people but those with problems in need or help and crying oiut for it.
i FULLY understand that nthis is not the case for all young people and that some do cause a lot of distress and hurt and misery to innocent people fo
ris - 29 November 2011 @ 2:15 PM
please could you advice me on how to appeal against a nuisance behaviour order which was passed in county court in nov 2008 preventing my son from entering my property.Can you advice me on wether my son can have the order lifted so that he can visit me
JOJO - 21 November 2011 @ 12:56 AM
Why are you trying to protect the perpetrators? Have you lived with the constant fear and anxiety of an anti social neighbour? Where are the victims rights in all this? And LA's don't just issue ASBO's for the sake of it. It takes months and in my case years to collect evidence of anti social behaviour. What about my mental health? What about my child being protected! What about the people who are trying to get on in life, but who are scunnered on a daily basis by the odd few who have no community consideration. You make it sound like these poor innocent people are being victimised. Come and stay with me for a week and you will see REAL victimisation.
dmac - 28 September 2011 @ 2:20 AM
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