Inside Justice

Short-term sentences are damaging and ineffective, writes Karen Mccluskey

Tomorrow will see the first release of data that monitors the impact of the extension to the Presumption Against Short Sentences (PASS) in Scotland. This extension was brought in in June 2019 and means that the court should not impose a prison sentence of 12 months or less unless they consider that no other sentence is appropriate.

Last year’s criminal proceedings figures, released in January 2019 and covering 2017-2018, showed that 80 per cent of all jail terms imposed in 2017/18 were for less than 12 months. Since the extension to PASS there is hope and expectation that more people will serve their sentence in the community, repaying their debt and being supported to address some of the challenges they face. I have been a huge supporter of both the presumption against short term sentences, and the problem-solving sheriffs across the country who can have such a huge impact on the person being sentenced. For anyone watching the Channel 4 programme ‘How to Stay Out of Jail’ based on Durham Constabulary’s diversion work, it documents beautifully how we can reduce offending when we get the services right. Who knew!?

I know the damage short-term prison sentences do and I also know how ineffective they are. I’ve met too many people who are serving a life sentence in instalments, their addiction and mental health needs untreated, their trauma unaddressed and their housing, social support and employment broken over and over again. Our own addiction to imprisonment as the only response to crime feeds itself, repeatedly setting people up to fail as they return to prison. The social cost is devastating – not to mention the cost to our already over-burdened public purse.

In anticipation of PASS, last year Community Justice Scotland conducted some research into the needs of people completing sentences of under 12 months and of those completing community sentences.

What we found was a group of people with needs that were many, serious and unmet; mental health, addiction and physical ill-health and they were also beset with worries about money, housing and employment. What we found was a group of people who have been let down by services – and people - throughout their lives, many who had come through our care system. This is not to dismiss the crimes they had committed, for there is always a victim who has been damaged by the crime, but it does raise the difficult and uncomfortable question of who it is we are filling our prisons with. What does it say about us as a nation if the many of those we lock away are sick, abused, traumatised and impoverished?

Given my enthusiasm for PASS, am I positive about tomorrow’s figures? I’m not sure that I am. Life is really complex for many people in Scotland. Deaths involving hopelessness, trauma and drugs are up (let’s not just talk about drug deaths, drug use is only one of the factors) and homelessness applications are up. We all know that our prisons are still crammed full, even more so than last year, drifting above 8,000 people and now the call to build more prisons is louder. It’s hard to see if the hopes of the presumption will be realised in the figures, although we are in early days.

PASS could never be a silver bullet on its own – it needs to be supported across sectors and agencies in the community. We need less dog-whistles and point-scoring and more honesty about what kind of country we want to be. JFK said “Too often we enjoy the comfort of opinion without the discomfort of thought”. If we can’t even accept the real and extensive evidence of what prevents offending, what chance do progressive policies like PASS have?