Criminals could serve only a third of jail term

Move ‘would let rapists and killers back on street’

KILLERS, rapists and other serious criminals could be released from prison after serving only a third of their sentence under a ‘reckless softtouch justice’ shake-up.

SNP ministers have unveiled proposals which could see prisoners being eligible for release much earlier than at present.

Those on sentences of four years or fewer could be eligible for early release after only a third of their sentence, while those on longer sentences could get Parole Board hearings to consider their release after serving the same period.

It is part of reforms contained in a new consultation, with ministers saying they want to reassess the role prisons should play ‘in a modern and progressive Scotland’.

Among other proposals, criminals could spend part of their sentence in prison and part of it in the community, while judges would be told they should only refuse bail for public safety reasons.

Any inmates who are judged to no longer be a serious threat to the public could also be freed early in order to spend the rest of their sentence in the community, possibly with electronic monitoring.

Ministers are also seeking to secure ‘executive release power’, allowing them to empty jails in ‘exceptional circumstances’.

Scottish Conservative justice spokesman Jamie Greene said: ‘These reckless soft-touch justice proposals from the SNP Government are making prison sentences almost meaningless. If the SNP truly wanted to do something for victims, they would back the Scottish Conservatives’ calls to end automatic early release.

‘Instead, they are intent on letting rapists and killers back on our streets after serving only a small fraction of their sentence.

‘The SNP Government must stop stacking the odds in criminals’ favour and start putting victims first.’

The changes were contained in a consultation on ‘bail and release from custody arrangements in Scotland’, published yesterday by the Scottish Government.

Currently, most prisoners serving four years or more can be considered for early release from the halfway point of their sentence, while almost all of those serving shorter sentences of less than four years are automatically released halfway through their sentence.

The document proposes a more ‘flexible’ approach, where ‘those who do not, or no longer, pose a risk of serious harm could be considered for earlier release, or to serve the remainder of their sentence in the community’.

It proposes those serving shorter sentences ‘could be automatically released earlier than the half-way point of their sentence, eg at the 1/3 point’, when they could either face post-release conditions such as electronic monitoring until the half-way point or they could be released ‘unconditionally’.

It says that those serving sentences of more than four years ‘could have their case brought before the Parole Board for consideration before the half-way point of their sentence’.

The document says this could happen based on a risk assessment to indicate if they no longer pose a risk of serious harm ‘or could be done more automatically by amending legislation so that cases are considered by the Parole Board at the 1/3 point of the sentence (or a different fraction) rather than at halfway’.

Justice Secretary Keith Brown said: ‘Our overarching aim for the justice system in Scotland is to improve public safety, support victims and reduce rates of victimisation. The proposals in this consultation support that aim.

‘We cannot simply keep using imprisonment to address wider societal harms. In some cases such use can exacerbate the harm.’