A thief who stole money from cash machine turned himself in after a police appeal - and was not charged as a result.

This is just one way in which police in South Derbyshire have been seeking to crack down on petty crime.

Often, when crimes are committed, the victim does not want to press charges.

In these instances, police can suggest restorative justice instead.

This form of punishment does not land the culprits with criminal records, saves the time and money spent on potential court cases, and focuses on rehabilitation and reconciliation.

Several examples of how police in South Derbyshire are using this form of prosecution came to light in a district council meeting in Melbourne.


PCSO Emma Guest, part of the Melbourne Safer Neighbourhood Team, gave three recent examples of restorative justice from her patch.

  1. A couple of teenagers stole cash and sweets from a shop. They were made to return the cash and the remaining sweets and carried out a litter pick.
  2. A member of the public forgot to take their money from a cash machine at a branch of Sainsbury’s. Police put out a picture of the person who was believed to subsequently have taken the cash. The suspect then handed themselves in and returned the money and was not charged.
  3. Several teenagers had a falling out. Some of these youngsters chose to throw eggs at the house of one of the people they had been arguing with.  Police made the teenagers go back to the house the next day and clean it all off.

Inspector Kate Bateman, who is in charge of policing in South Derbyshire, said: “Restorative justice or community remedy is a way of bringing those harmed by minor crime or anti-social behaviour and those responsible for the harm, in to communication, enabling everyone affected to play a part in repairing the harm and finding a positive way forward.

“Care is taken to ensure that all are in agreement with the outcome.”