My thought exactly! None of them were violent, and for most the total value of items stolen were less than £30-40. These women just needed to be taken care of.

My thought exactly! None of them were violent, and for most the total value of items stolen were less than £30-40. These women just needed to be taken care of. A solution like the one you suggest would be more practical. Save from the costs of a proper prison and provide proper care for their needs. Sometimes I am wondering how we will age, with the loneliness creeping in to all modern societies (I don't think this is just a Europe problem), we have to find better solutions to stealing and imprisoning 70+ yo people for a soft drink and some rice. Japan needs a root-cause-analysis asap, and act on it without burrying their head in the sand.