The Thief Catchers

For generations criminal justice policy has been predicated on the belief that chasing criminals and locking them up is key to reducing crime. The truth is that for years the police have been repeatedly arresting the same relatively small group of criminals who continue to commit robbery, burglary, theft and other crimes that affect us.

The majority of this group are drug addicts and for them prison is no deterrent. In fact many use their repeated spells in custody as a way of briefly stabilising their chaotic lives before re-emerging to continue offending.

With exclusive access over six months to an innovative Offender Management scheme in Bristol, Dispatches follows the progress of three persistent criminals who all say they want to change.

The scheme offers them all the support they could need to go straight - drug services, accommodation and access to employment - hoping to reduce the harm they cause to themselves and society and save money by no longer warehousing persistent offenders in prison at a cost of £40,000 per year, per convict.

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