THE burglar who was 13 when he committed the offences could could not be named by the Daily Echo because of our ridiculous juvenile protection laws.

It is way past the days of the Artful Dodger when thieves were treated as criminals and hanged irrespective of age, although no sane person would wish to return to those dark days.

The pendulum has swung full circle. The overdue change in the law should name and shame those individuals and the parents, if need be, to show those people up for what they have become.

Considering the current attitude of our judiciary, I understand a local prolific habitual thief who began his criminal activities at a young age, who having appeared before the court again, was told to go away and "think''!

Do the public gain any real benefit from our judicial system, which is out of step with a common sense approach?

Perhaps we should "think'' about who is nominated to sit in judgement on us.

HUGH CLEVERLY, Fair Oak.