Parliament Approves Prisoner Early Release Plans
On Thursday 25th July 2024 parliament debated and then approved a draft statutory instrument titled The Criminal Justice Act 2003 (Requisite and Minimum Custodial Periods) Order 2024.
This will take effect on September 10, 2024, and will afford some prisoners early release. It has been introduced in an attempt to reduce prison numbers, as the prison estate is approaching full capacity.
It is estimated that this policy change will reduce demand for total prison places between 4,900 and 6,200 (and for the male estate between 4,600 and 5,900).
The Statutory Instrument (SI) modifies the automatic release point for certain Standard Determinate Sentences, including Section 250 sentences under the Sentencing Act 2020, and Detention in a Young Offenders Institution sentences.
A Standard Determinate Sentence is the most common type of custodial sentence issued by the courts. Essentially the sentencing court fixes the length of the sentence, and the release point is not subject to assessment or input by the parole board. These sentences are available for most crimes.
The practical effect will be to authorise release when a person has served 40% of the sentence instead of 50% as now.
For example, at present a person sentenced to 30 months of custody would be eligible for automatic release (ignoring any issue of home detention curfew) after 15 months. When this change is implemented, release at 40% will mean that the prisoner will only need to serve 12 months before being eligible for automatic release.
Are there any exceptions?
There are lots of offences which are not included in the new release scheme, namely:
- an offence under the Sexual Offences Act 1956;
- an offence in the Sexual Offences Act 2003 (including the offences listed in Schedule 3 to that Act);
- a sexual offence listed in Schedule 15 to the Criminal Justice Act 2003; d. a violent offence listed in Schedule 15 to the Criminal Justice Act 2003 where the sentence is 4 years or more;
- stalking offences under the Protection from Harassment Act 1997;
- controlling and coercive behaviour in an intimate or family relationship under the Serious Crime Act 2015;
- non-fatal strangulation and suffocation under the Serious Crime Act 2015;
- breach of a restraining order in the Sentencing Act 2020;
- breach of a non-molestation order in the Family Law Act 1996;
- breach of a Domestic Abuse Protection Order in the Domestic Abuse Act 2021
- an offence under the National Security Act 2023;
- an offence under the Official Secrets Act 1989;
- an offence under the Official Secrets Act 1920;
- an offence under the Official Secrets Act 1911;
- additional terrorism-related offences and state threat-related offences
Where an individual has been sentenced to 12 months or more for a specified type of offence, the Probation Service Victim Contact Scheme may apply to victims. There may be an additional number of discretionary cases. Where this is the case, the standard victim contact engagement will be required to support release.
Offenders who, at the point of commencement, have already been released from their sentence before the 50% automatic release point – for example, on Home Detention Curfew or End of Custody Supervised Licence – and are no longer in custody will be excluded from the changes as will Foreign National Offenders who have been removed from prison before their automatic release date for the purposes of deportation under the Early Removal Scheme.
Does this apply to those already sentenced?
Yes it does. When the changes come into force, offenders who are in custody serving a sentence which is eligible for the change in automatic release point will have their release date recalculated. This may mean they will become immediately eligible for release if they are at or beyond the 40% point in their sentence when the change is commenced.
How can we help?
If you need specialist advice in relation to any criminal investigation or prosecution, from the initial investigation through to court proceedings, please get in touch. Call John Howey on 020 7388 1658 or email jhowey@jfhlaw.co.uk. Let us help.
Image credit: “Prison cell” by Tim Pearce, Los Gatos is marked with CC BY 2.0.
