Vol. 526 No. 1
90 Mr. Connaughton asked the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform the number of persons sentenced to terms of imprisonment or detention who have in each of the years 1997, 1998, 1999 and to date in 2000 absconded; the number of persons who have not been returned to prison following absconding; and the action taken to date to tackle this problem. [25843/00]
231 Mr. Shatter asked the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform the number of persons sentenced to terms of imprisonment or detention who have absconded in each of the years 1997, 1998, 1999 and to date in 2000; the number of persons who have not been returned to prison following them absconding; and the action taken to date to tackle this problem. [25841/00]
I propose to take Questions Nos. 90 and 231 together.
There were no escapes from within any of the closed prison institutions in the period from 1997 to date. When talking about numbers at large, it is important to note that the majority of persons in this category are persons who were deemed suitable for release but did not abide by their temporary release conditions. The absconding figures requested by the Deputy are as follows:
|
Year |
Number ofabscondings |
Numberstill at large |
|
1997 |
517 |
79 |
|
1998 |
509 |
76 |
|
1999 |
445 |
85 |
|
2000 (to date) |
228 |
92 |
The figures requested exclude Mountjoy Prison for which up-to-date statistics are not readily accessible in the short time available to reply to the Deputies' questions. The prisons information technology project, which is now close to completion, will include a comprehensive prisoner record system which will ensure the availability of such information more speedily in the future.
As a direct result of the Government's prisons building programme, there has been a significant reduction, confirmed by the above figures, in the number of abscondings from prison institutions. It is hoped that the numbers will continue to reduce as the instances of temporary release will be limited to prisoners on structured temporary release programmes.
The term "absconding" refers to a person leaving the confines of an open centre without permission or a person who breaks the conditions of temporary release by failing to return or sign on at an appointed time or place. As soon as the prison authorities become aware of such an incident the matter is immediately reported to both the Garda and my Department. At that stage the offender is deemed to be at large and he can be arrested without warrant and returned to custody without the need for fresh court proceedings. In addition, when a person is recaptured after absconding from an open centre he or she is automatically returned to a closed institution.
An element of trust is crucial to the successful operation of even the most secure prison in the State and while there is a lesser emphasis on security in open centres there are very good reasons for this. There are a number of safeguards in place to minimise incidents, such as absconding from open centres.
Additional information.For example, all inmates are pre-selected as being suitable for open conditions, they are monitored on a daily basis and some are, from time to time, for various reasons, including security related ones, returned to closed prisons. The risk of absconding is of course a major consideration in the selection of offenders for open centres. Other factors include the nature of the offence, the length of sentence left to serve and the individual offender's compatibility with the regime.
Regrettably, it is the case that some offenders do on occasion abscond from open centres. This, however, must be kept in context. The vast majority of offenders who transfer to such institutions complete their sentences without incident and this is testament to the overall integrity of the regimes there and to the prisoner selection process.
The second category of abscondings are those who fail to return from temporary release at the assigned time and place and are then deemed to be unlawfully at large. Over the past decade, many prisoners were released early due to severe overcrowding in the committal prisons, particularly in Mountjoy Prison and St. Patrick's Institution. As a direct consequence of the Government's ongoing prisons building programme, there has been a significant reduction in the proportion of offenders on temporary release, from 19% of those serving sentences in November 1996 to 6% at present. The number on temporary release has fallen from a daily average of 550 to 200 in the same time period.
Temporary release is an important vehicle for reintegrating an offender into the community in a planned way. While due regard must be had to any risk which a particular release might pose, the generally accepted view is that the risk to the community would be even greater if, in certain cases, attempts at planned reintegration of offenders were not made since they must return to the community in any event on the expiry of their sentence.
According to the figures made available by the Minister, 344 people absconded during his period of office, excluding those who absconded from Mountjoy Prison and who are at large under his political watch. Does he agree that if an estimate of the likely numbers who have absconded from Mountjoy Prison is included, approximately 500 people sentenced to terms of imprisonment who were given temporary release during his period of office, presumably by the application of the revolving door technique, have not returned to prison? Does he also agree that these make a mockery of the administration of justice and the sentences imposed by the Judiciary? Does he agree that not only have they not served their time, but that nothing is being done about them?
Will the Minister clarify why 79 of those who absconded in 1997, 78 in 1998 and 85 in 1995 are still absconding this year? Why is this still happening? What steps have been put in place to address this problem? It is a scandal that approximately 500 people continue to abscond.
Deputy Shatter may use whatever superlatives he likes but the facts will, as always, speak for themselves. As I explained – perhaps the Deputy was not listening – the vast majority of persons in this category were deemed suitable for and granted temporary release but did not abide by their temporary release conditions. The Deputy is trying to give the false impression that 500 people have escaped from prison. That is not the case.
The conditions are meaningless if people do not abide by them.
Will the Deputy please listen? In November 1996, when his party was in government, 19% of the prison population were on temporary release. Today it is 6%, a reduction of 13% over a period of three years, the reason being the prisons building programme. Thirteen prisoners were on temporary release from Cork Prison last Friday; 135 were on temporary release two years earlier.
I am concerned about the temporary release system. From the figures on temporary release he has supplied will the Minister indicate if there is evidence to suggest that some people have reoffended?
Over the last three years the number of indictable crimes has been reduced by 21%. Over that period the Government engaged in a very extensive prisons building programme. The number of people on temporary release, as a percentage of the prison population, is far lower today than it was when the Government took office. This is not a coincidence. There must be a parallel between the numbers not on temporary release today and the reduction in the numbers on temporary release. I am approaching the stage where the revolving door will be closed and where people will only be given temporary release in a structured way to assist them with their rehabilitation into society and not where, as happened under previous Administrations, people were released on the sole criterion that there was no prison accommodation for them.
