Overcrowded prisons mean criminals can go free

CRIMINALS can be spared jail to avoid putting further pressure on overcrowded prisons that are almost full, senior judges have ruled.

The declaration that courts should take account of overcrowding when deciding whether to imprison convicted criminals came as the court of appeal quashed a six-month jail sentence imposed on a man who assaulted an emergency worker.

It is the first time that judges have been advised to spare convicted offenders from jail because of prison overcrowding since the Covid pandemic in 2020, when prisons were locked down to stop the spread of the virus.

The Daily Telegraph revealed this week that prisoners may have to be released early, as the jail population has nearly hit its capacity. It is just 600 short of the maximum 85,000 that prisons can safely hold.

The Ministry of Justice is commissioning up to 400 police cells to take the overflow of prisoners.

In the ruling on Thursday, Lord Justice Edis said courts should now “have an awareness of the impact of the current prison population levels” when sentencing offenders.