Like totally awesome dude!
Posted on 07/27/2002 2:59:44 PM PDT by Pokey78
900 prisoners are being released after a ruling from the European Court, which said extra time for bad behaviour violated their human rights.
Prison governors will hold talks to decide how to keep order in jails after they were stripped of the power to add time to sentences.
The ruling from the European Court of Human Rights said making inmates serve extra time for bad behaviour violated their right to a fair trial.
Prison governors in England and Wales have this week been sent a letter from the Prison Service headquarters suspending the power to impose added days and ordering them to strike off any added days from current sentences.
The way is now open for potentially thousands of offenders who were made to serve extra time to sue the Prison Service for unlawful imprisonment.
Alternative action such as extending the penalty of removing privileges from a disruptive prisoner is one option thought likely to be considered.
Measures such as taking away a prisoner's television rights for bad behaviour have been effective in the past, said David Roddan, general secretary of the Prison Governors Association.
Mr Roddan said reaction to the ECHR judgement among the group's members had been "mixed", with some unhappy members and others in favour of the move.
He did not think the ruling would necessarily make enforcing order more difficult, pointing out that prisons in Scotland had ditched the "additional days" punishment last year, with no increase in disorder.
But he stressed that a new means of keeping order in prisons must be agreed.
Joe Levenson of the Prison Reform Trust said: "We welcome the news that prison governors will lose their powers to extend prisoners' sentences.
"Imprisonment should only be imposed by an independent court and with legal representation available for prisoners.
The Strasbourg cases involved Okechukwiw Ezeh, who was charged with using threatening language to a probation officer, and Lawrence Connors, who was charged with assault of a prison officer.
Judges said Ezeh's sentence of an extra 40 days and Connors term of an extra seven days' detention violated Article 6 of the European Convention on Human Rights because they had been denied the right to a fair trial.
Prison governors have been able to add up to 42 days to a prisoner's sentence since 1991.
Obviously, "time outs" are also unacceptable?
Perhaps many of them are--but come on, don't tell me you think the EU did something right! I have seen a great variety of exotic opinions on this forum, but I have yet to be told by anyone that "the EU did something right" !
Yeah! So what!
Said it would be a big, page one story in tomorrow's Indianapolis Star.
Seems 2800 prisoners were given early release in the last 9(?) months.
Says "police are no longer arresting people for minor crimes like pot smoking and prostitution".
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.