Revolving Door
Now the one-legged David Phillips seems to be a career criminal with an prolific record of housebreaking going back over 30 years, i.e. all of his adult life.
And speaking as someone whose home has been the scene of an attempted burglary only very recently, I do not see this as a minor crime which can be repeated again and again - without any really serious punishment.
People whose homes are burgled suffer enormously, not just from the theft of their personal and sometimes very precious property, but also from the fact their their private space has been invaded by some complete scumbag - who often trash the place or take a crap on the floor before they leave with their ill-gotten gains.
And as David Phillips has been doing this all his adult life and is probably a drain on society anyway, I would send him to jail for a long time - because if he can't mend his ways, then the criminal justice system should take his liberty away and prevent him from being such a public menace.
One-legged thief is jailed
Saturday 14 December 2013
A thief who broke into a waste recycling centre office and stole hundreds of pounds of goods was recognised on CCTV because he has only one leg.
David Phillips, 46, was seen ransacking the office and hopping away from the scene on crutches and was instantly recognised by police officers.
Yesterday, at Perth Sheriff Court, Phillips was jailed for 30 months and was also ordered to complete a further 375 days of an unexpired sentence.
Phillips, who has committed a string of housebreakings since 1983 - when he had two legs - admitted breaking into the Viridor Waste Management office in Perth on 6 January.
Fiscal depute Stuart Richardson said the footage showed an unknown second man was carrying most of the items out of the office because Phillips walks with the aid of crutches.
He said the items stolen were valued at £500 and damage to the same value was caused during the break-in.
Sheriff Michael Fletcher told Phillips he had "an unenviable record" and noted that he had been a prolific housebreaker on a regular basis for the past 30 years.
Saturday 14 December 2013
A thief who broke into a waste recycling centre office and stole hundreds of pounds of goods was recognised on CCTV because he has only one leg.
David Phillips, 46, was seen ransacking the office and hopping away from the scene on crutches and was instantly recognised by police officers.
Yesterday, at Perth Sheriff Court, Phillips was jailed for 30 months and was also ordered to complete a further 375 days of an unexpired sentence.
Phillips, who has committed a string of housebreakings since 1983 - when he had two legs - admitted breaking into the Viridor Waste Management office in Perth on 6 January.
Fiscal depute Stuart Richardson said the footage showed an unknown second man was carrying most of the items out of the office because Phillips walks with the aid of crutches.
He said the items stolen were valued at £500 and damage to the same value was caused during the break-in.
Sheriff Michael Fletcher told Phillips he had "an unenviable record" and noted that he had been a prolific housebreaker on a regular basis for the past 30 years.
