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Page last updated at 08:18 GMT, Monday, 29 August 2011 09:18 UK

Magistrates' chief 'angry' at sentencing criticism

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The Chairman of the Magistrates Association, John Thornhill, has defended the sentences handed down after the riots in England earlier this month.

Eoin McLennan-Murray, president of the Prison Governors' Association, had said there had been a "feeding frenzy" on sentencing, which appealed to a populist mentality. Mr Thornhill pointed out that most of the cases were handled by the Crown Courts, not by magistrates, and said he was "angry and concerned" about the criticism.

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