But typically for today's modern judiciary, did absolutely nothing to ensure it wouldn't happen again in future...
Andrew Clark, 43, died in hospital three days after he was struck by Demeish Williams, 30, outside the shop on Upper Elmers End Road in Beckenham at around 8.30pm on March 16. He had become aggressive after Andrew told him he couldn’t cut in front of them in the queue. After a brief argument Williams got a facemask from his car, waited outside for the shop for Andrew, hit him once to the side of the head with an open palm, and shouted “I told you to f***ing apologise”.
Yes, Reader, it's them again....
Williams has been jailed for five years and three months. Williams will serve up to two-thirds of the sentence before he is eligible for release, meaning that accounting for time already spent on remand he could be back on the streets by September 2028.
The length of the sentence prompted dismay from Andrew’s family in court as one relative said “this country is a joke” and another called the sentence a “disgrace”.
It is.
In a statement issued to the press, Andrew’s family said:“We are sincerely grateful to the judge and the court for their thorough consideration of this case, and for recognising the seriousness of this offence.
“For us as a family, this process has exposed the serious shortcomings within our outdated justice system.
“Victims are too often left without the protection, transparency and fairness they deserve.
“An archaic legal framework cannot meet the demands of modern society, nor the needs of victims, their families, friends and wider communities.
“Overcrowded and under-funded prisons place pressure on the courts to sentence based on capacity rather than justice.”
I can't disagree, though I think you give the judge too much credit by believing this lax sentence is due to concerns over space in the prison system, and not simply his own bleeding heart when it comes to the street savagery innate in these people, which he will probably never have to face in his own life, and so he has no concerns about ensuring doesn't proliferate.
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