Thu, 2010-12-30

Kevin Davis, was taken to court yesterday for a number of burglaries that have been happening around the island for the past few weeks. As a result he was convicted of 5 counts of burglary with 6 counts taken into consideration (TIC).

What does 'offences taken into consideration' mean?

The court may take other offences into consideration when they pass sentence.

When a court is making decisions about sentencing or compensation awards something called ‘offences taken into consideration’ may be a factor if an offender has committed a lot of crimes as well as the one they are on trial for. It is an alternative to the criminal justice system having to charge the same person with a large number of offences. If the offender is prepared to fully admit to the court that they are guilty of these other crimes, the court can then ‘deal with’ the extra offences at the same time.

This can be a good thing because often the police will believe the offender committed the crimes but they don’t have enough evidence to convict them. If there is enough evidence on the other crimes, or if they are even more serious than the one on trial, they will be dealt with separately and not ‘taken into consideration’.

If the offender admits their guilt, it allows the court to deliver a form of justice for them without the risk of trying to bring another court case with poor evidence. The court also benefits from having a fuller picture of the behavior and circumstances of the offender.

In total 11 burglaries were cleared as a result of this conviction. He received a 4 year conviction for the burglaries and one year for a stolen bike.

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