Sir, Double killer Michael Bambrick was sentenced to 18 years at the Central Criminal Court on July 26th. Mr Justice Carney said that "to protect the community and protect Bambrick from himself would necessitate jailing Bambrick for life with the possibility of release after a substantial punitive period, but only when the expert advisers to the Minister for Justice were fully satisfied he no longer posed a danger or threat to women in particular".
That was the approach Justice Carney would wish to take, but interpretations of the Constitution, which were binding, persuade me that I am not free under the law as it stands to approach the case from this perspective". In other words if the Criminal Justice Law is not changed, Bambrick will be released into society in about 12 years' time, without any control or supervision.
The Women's Political Association would like to express its view that this is totally unacceptable the Criminal Justice Law simply must be changed. Again, WPA appeals to the Minister for Justice, Nora Owen, to do something about it here and now. When even Mr Justice Carney states that "life imprisonment would be a preference but not an option", something is radically wrong and must be put right. Yours etc. PRO, WPA (Dublin), 2 Erne Terrace, Dublin 2.