For the first time, British courts will be enjoined to consider the full impact of arson, vandalism, graffiti and other criminal damage to historic buildings and cultural assets when sentencing offenders, according to new guidelines published by Britain’s Sentencing Council.
For the first time, the Council said in a news release, “all courts in England and Wales will have formal guidance to ensure that they take account of [t]he full impact of arson or criminal damage such as vandalism on national heritage assets including listed buildings, historic objects or unique parts of national heritage and history.”
The Guidelines will come into effect October 1, 2019.
Britain’s Jewish heritage has suffered occasional instances of vandalism or other damage in recent years, among them:
An arson attack in 2018 on the historic Grade II listed synagogue in Exeter (built in 1763) — where the perpetrator also set himself on fire. (The perpetrator was given “an indefinite hospital order after pleading guilty to an arson and two charges under the Terrorism Act” on July 5 2019.) See video below:
An “Urban Explorer” crashed through the ceiling of the Grade II listed former Greenbank synagogue in Liverpool after breaking into the abandoned building in June. Vandals toppled dozens of headstones and causing around £100,000 of damage at a Jewish cemetery in Manchester in 2014. Grass turf from graves was stolen from a historic Jewish cemetery in Liverpool in 2014. There have been various instances of antisemitic graffiti at or outside synagogues. (The Jewish cemetery in Belfast, Northern Ireland was vandalized in 2016, but the Sentencing Council guidelines only regard England and Wales.)
The sentencing guidelines apply to all offenders over the age of 18. The Guidelines include a list of specific types of damage covered, including:
- Arson
- Criminal damage / arson with intent to endanger life or reckless as to whether life endangered
- Criminal damage where the damage has a value of more than £5000
- Criminal damage where the damage has a value of less than £5000 (such as graffiti)
- Racially or religiously aggravated criminal damage
- Threats to destroy or damage property,
Welcoming the news guidelines, Mark Harrison, Head of Heritage Crime Strategy for Historic England, said:
“England’s heritage can’t be valued purely in economic terms. The impact of criminal damage and arson to our historic buildings and archaeological sites has far-reaching consequences over and above what has been damaged or lost. Damage to our heritage comes in many forms. Whether it be graffiti painted on the walls of a historic church, vandalism to the stonework of an ancient castle or causing a fire that devastates a Medieval barn or Victorian pier; these offences have a detrimental impact on both the historic property or site and the local community in which it is located.
The new guidelines will help the courts identify all the relevant factors to include in their sentencing decisions as they will now be able to consider ‘threats to cause criminal damage’, ‘the act of damage’ and ‘damage by fire’. It will also aid Historic England’s work with the Police and Crown Prosecution Service when cases involve damage caused to heritage or cultural assets.”