Last week, a petty criminal was given a 150-hour community work sentence after he had pleaded guilty to theft. This is one of the first cases where a crime, albeit petty, has been punished in this way.

Regardless of the particular case, it is very heartening to see that the courts have started to consider community work as an alternative form of “punishment”. One could debate whether it is in fact a punishment, but it definitely has more value to it than a simple conditional discharge.

There are various non-custodial punishments. These range from probation orders under the supervision of a probation officer or a social worker, to a simple conditional discharge, fine or suspended prison sentence.

If one looks at the trend of petty crime in Malta, offenders normally start out with a probation order, then a couple of conditional discharges, then a suspended jail sentence and finally prison time proper.

But if one looks at the time in-between offences, many offenders will tend to ignore probation orders and conditional discharges, thinking that they will simply get away with it again and again.

A community service order helps on more fronts than one.

The first benefits the offenders themselves. A conditional discharge, in all reality, does not do much to dissuade people from committing a crime. It is much like a small slap on the wrist of a naughty child, or that is how they perceive it to be, anyway.

At least if these people are given work to do, such as taking care of public gardens, sweeping public areas, even helping out with the elderly, they will begin to notice that their crime has led to certain consequences. Another alternative would be for them to be stationed with, for example, the YMCA, where they can do work that will be of even more benefit to those who are truly in need.

It can also help to get people back on track if they have strayed from the straight and narrow. Giving them work to do will hopefully instil a sense of responsibility in them as well as show those who have lost belief in their abilities that they still have something to offer to society. If one were to involve probation officers or social workers, then that person might have the support they need to lift themselves out of a life of crime, or alternatively not to fall into it, if they are first time offenders.

What is important, though, is that the authorities make sure that these orders are followed and not simply left by the wayside, or that the offender simply fobs people into thinking that tasks have been carried out when they have, in fact, not been. In such cases, offenders should be put into jail for a stipulated term straightaway.

There is value here. Such orders are a real alternative to prison terms and the offenders can atone for their deeds by giving something back to the community.

It also stops petty criminals from becoming even more hardened by jail time. Of course, one must draw the line and we should not expect to see community service orders handed out like pastizzi. A crime that merits a jail term should remain that. But rather than slapping people’s wrists and letting them off “Scot free”, this type of punishment might prove to be a better deterrent, especially to younger offenders.