ALMOST ONE in five prisoners serving sentences is now on temporary release from Irish jails. The main reason is that prisons are overcrowded, which has left a major shortage of space to accommodate new prisoners. Minister for Justice Alan Shatter has favoured an early release programme for prisoners to relieve overcrowding in jails. This has meant the number on temporary release as a proportion of the prison population, already high, has continued to rise rapidly. In 2009, the daily average number of prisoners on temporary release stood at 12 per cent. The figure has now reached some 18 per cent.
A report in this newspaper yesterday highlighted a worrying aspect of the early release programme. It revealed how the programme, however well- intentioned, has produced a perverse incentive for prisoners, and an unacceptable outcome for society. Because overcrowding in high-security jails has become acute, the prison authorities have tried to relieve pressure on space. They have offered those judged suitable the option of moving to an open prison.
Some prisoners have rejected the offer, perhaps because the new location may make family visits more difficult. Others, who have many months of their prison sentence to serve, have – surprisingly – spurned the comparative attractions of an open prison. They have found it worthwhile to say no, having quickly discovered how a refusal to move can help to expedite their early release from prison. How can this happen?
The criteria for assessing prison transfers are broadly similar to those for temporary release: the inmate must represent a low risk to the public and be unlikely to reoffend. So those who qualify for a prison transfer may also be eligible for temporary release. Despite refusing to move to an open prison, prisoners have also found that their request for temporary release is repeatedly renewed until their jail sentence has expired. That leaves some with an incentive to refuse a prison transfer on the realistic expectation of a better outcome: namely, early release from jail by prison authorities who seem more anxious to relieve overcrowding than to ensure that sentences passed by the courts are fully honoured.
Clearly, there is a case to be made for an early release programme for some categories of prisoners. In a recent pilot study programme, those prisoners who were not a risk to the public secured an early release from jail in exchange for doing community service. Too many of those in prison are serving short sentences for relatively minor criminal offences. Given the large number of prisoners – 4,300 – and the high average annual cost – over €70,000 – of keeping them in custody, there is also an economic need to minimise the maintenance costs where possible. However, the current bizarre circumstances, where almost one in five of those serving prison sentences is on temporary release, and where some criminals by refusing to move to open prisons can improve their chances of leaving prison sooner, require a proper public explanation. Mr Shatter, and the Irish Prison Service, should provide it.