Dáil Éireann debate -
Thursday, 7 May 1992

Vol. 419 No. 3

Written Answers. - Prison Escape.

Alan Shatter

Question:

38 Mr. Shatter asked the Minister for Justice if he will outline the circumstances which resulted in a person (details supplied), serving a life sentence for murder, escaping when in the custody of a welfare officer on 29 April; the reason the escapee was out of prison on temporary release; the number of years imprisonment he has served to date, and if he will make a statement on the matter.

Minister for Justice (Mr. Flynn)

The prisoner referred to by the Deputy was committed to prison in 1982 to serve a sentence of penal servitude for life for murder. In 1990 the case was the subject of a review body by the Sentence Review Group which is a non-statutory body set up in 1989 to advise the Minister in relation to the administration of long term prison sentences. Arising out of that review, the prisoner was granted a series of accompanied outings for re-socialisation purposes, pending a further review later this year. He was on his ninth such outing when he absconded on 29 April, 1992. He was re-captured on 1 May, 1992.

Pre-release programmes are common to civilised penal systems throughout the world. They attempt to re-integrate offenders into the community in a planned way. All decisions to grant temporary releases are made with due regard to the length of sentence, the nature of the offence, length of time served, behaviour while in custody and the safety of the public. In this case there was, in addition, the advice of the Sentence Review Group.

I am satisfied that the temporary release in this case was granted only after rigorous scrutiny and subject to proper safeguards and was in accordance with long-standing practice. No system of temporary release or pre-release programme is infallible and the fact that the prisoner in this instance absconded on his ninth outing does not mean that the system is defective or alter the fact that it is desirable and necessary to have such a system.