‘Hundreds’ of prisoners freed early in England and Wales not fitted with tags – The Guardian

‘Prisoners freed early to ease overcrowding in jails have not been fitted with electronic tags despite it being a condition of their release, prompting criticism from a parliamentary watchdog.’

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The Guardian, 19th September 2024

Source: www.theguardian.com

Secretary of State for Justice agrees to release dying prisoner on compassionate grounds following legal challenge – No. 5 Barristers Chambers

Posted September 19th, 2024 in chambers articles, early release, health, judicial review, news, prisons, probation by sally

‘On Friday 16 August 2024, following the urgent judicial review proceedings and interim relief application brought by the Prisoners’ Advice Service, instructing Philip Rule KC and Mirren Gidda of No5 Barristers’ Chambers, the Secretary of State for Justice agreed to grant early release on compassionate grounds (‘ERCG’) to a prisoner dying of stage 4 cancer and whose prognosis is just 6 weeks or so expected left to live.’

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No. 5 Barristers Chambers, 20th August 2024

Source: www.no5.com

Magistrates could give longer sentences under new proposals – BBC News

Posted September 17th, 2024 in criminal justice, Crown Court, delay, early release, magistrates, news, prisons, sentencing by tracey

‘Magistrates in England and Wales could be given powers to hand down longer custodial sentences under proposals to help reduce the backlog in crown courts and prisons.’

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BBC News, 16th September 2024

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Government defends early release scheme after freed prisoner charged with sexual assault – BBC News

Posted September 16th, 2024 in early release, Ministry of Justice, news, prisons, recidivists, sexual offences by tracey

‘The government has defended the early release of prisoners after it emerged a former inmate allegedly sexually assaulted a woman on the same day he was freed.’

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BBC News, 14th September 2024

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Prisoner early release begins to ease overcrowding – BBC News

Posted September 10th, 2024 in early release, imprisonment, Ministry of Justice, news, prisons by tracey

‘Up to 1,750 offenders have spent their last night in prison ahead of being released under the Ministry of Justice’s emergency plan to ease the overcrowding crisis in jails.’

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BBC News, 9th September 2024

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Prisoner found dead after inadequate welfare check – BBC News

Posted September 4th, 2024 in death in custody, news, ombudsmen, prisons by tracey

‘A welfare check on the morning of a prisoner’s death “fell short” of the required standards, a report by the prison ombudsman has said.’

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BBC News, 3rd September 2024

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Prison early release scheme to include some serious offenders, MoJ admits – The Guardian

‘Prisoners serving time for lesser crime following serious one will be eligible under plan to free up jail space, officials confirm.’

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The Guardian, 3rd September 2024

Source: www.theguardian.com

HMP Wandsworth living conditions are ‘inhumane’, finds report – The Guardian

Posted August 22nd, 2024 in health & safety, news, prisons, reports, self-harm by sally

‘Wandsworth prison is crumbling, overcrowded and vermin-infested, with inmates living in half the cell space available when it was first opened in 1851, according to a report published on Thursday.’

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The Guardian, 22nd August 2024

Source: www.theguardian.com

England prison overcrowding emergency measures come into force – The Guardian

‘Ministers have activated emergency measures to ease prison overcrowding as more rioters are sentenced for their role in the recent unrest.’

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The Guardian, 19th August 2024

Source: www.theguardian.com

No refunds in historic miscarriage of justice cases – BBC News

‘Victims of historic miscarriages of justice have been told by the government they must have “bed and board” costs for the time they spent in prison deducted from their compensation payments.’

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BBC News, 9th August 2024

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Man still in jail 20 years after laptop robbery – BBC News

‘A prisoner who has served almost five times his original sentence for a laptop robbery still has no prospect of being released.’

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BBC News, 3rd August 2024

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Number of prisoners released into homelessness rises by a third in a year, despite new government scheme – The Independent

‘The number of people released from prison into homelessness has risen 30 per cent in a year despite a major new scheme to house departing offenders, The Independent can reveal.’

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The Independent, 4th August 2024

Source: www.independent.co.uk

Serial killer Levi Bellfield blocked from having civil partnership – The Guardian

Posted August 2nd, 2024 in civil partnerships, human rights, imprisonment, legal aid, marriage, murder, news, prisons by michael

‘The serial killer Levi Bellfield has been blocked from having a civil partnership, after a new law came into force stopping the most serious offenders getting married behind bars.’

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The Guardian, 2nd August 2024

Source: www.theguardian.com

Violence, self-harm and drugs: Shock new figures lay bare crisis facing Britain’s prisons – The Independent

‘Violence and self-harm in Britain’s prisons is soaring while drugs are readily available with almost a quarter of jails overcrowded, grim new data has revealed.’

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The Independent, 25th July 2024

Source: www.independent.co.uk

Probation staffing crisis laid bare in damning reports as alarm sounded over public safety – The Independent

‘A string of new probation watchdog investigations have laid bare the staffing crisis blighting the service’s ability to supervise offenders in the community and keep the public safe.’

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The Independent, 24th July 2024

Source: www.independent.co.uk

Cut ‘unsustainable’ probation workload in England and Wales, urges watchdog – The Guardian

Posted July 22nd, 2024 in early release, Ministry of Justice, news, prisons, probation, statistics by sally

‘Ministers should consider reducing the caseload of the probation service by up to 40,000 offenders if they are to ease the overcrowding crisis in prisons, a watchdog has told the Guardian.’

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The Guardian, 22nd July 2024

Source: www.theguardian.com

Feltham YOI found to be most violent prison in England and Wales – The Guardian

Posted July 16th, 2024 in London, news, prisons, reports, violence, young offenders by tracey

‘A young offender institution has been identified as the most violent prison in the country, with teenage inmates refusing family visits to keep their relatives away from danger, a watchdog has found.’

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The Guardian, 16th July 2024

Source: www.theguardian.com

Which prisoners will be released from jail early? – BBC News

Posted July 15th, 2024 in early release, Ministry of Justice, news, police, prisons, statistics by tracey

‘The government has announced emergency measures to deal with prison overcrowding in England and Wales.’

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BBC News, 12th July 2024

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Gabriel Tan and Lewis Graham: A Quiet Revolution – Rationality and the Parole Board – UK Constitutional Law Association

‘It is not that often that first instance judges in judicial review claims disagree as to the approach to be taken in the context of a core question relating to judicial review. When it happens, administrative lawyers are bound to take notice. This has most recently occurred in the context of rationality challenges to decisions taken by the Secretary of State for Justice to reject Parole Board recommendations to release or transfer to open conditions. The most interesting aspect of this recent phenomenon is that the High Court has managed to hand down, on our count, 13 reported decisions over the last two years, before the Court of Appeal has had the opportunity to “resolve” the issue, although a hearing is currently listed before the Court of Appeal in appeals against two of these decisions in October 2024. In this piece, we seek to explain the current position, highlighting areas of agreement and disagreement between first instance judges, and which questions remain, as yet, unresolved.’

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UK Constitutional Law Association, 11th July 2024

Source: ukconstitutionallaw.org

Prisoners to be released early to ease overcrowding – BBC News

Posted July 11th, 2024 in early release, news, prisons, sentencing by sally

‘The government will announce plans on Friday to release prisoners early to stop jails becoming full, the BBC has confirmed.’

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BBC News, 11th July 2024

Source: www.bbc.co.uk