Criminal never had respect (8)
I believe the answer is:
venerate
'respect' is the definition.
(venerating is a kind of respecting)
'criminal never had' is the wordplay.
'criminal' indicates anagramming the letters.
'had' becomes 'ate' (e.g. I had an ice cream).
'never' anagrammed gives 'vener'.
'vener'+'ate'='VENERATE'
(Other definitions for venerate that I've seen before include "Regard with reverence" , "Regard with deep respect or worship" , "Revere highly" , "Think a great deal of" , "Treat with respect" .)