Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 1 December 2020
600. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for Justice the number of notifications regarding early releases or temporary releases made each year; and the proportion of these notifications to the total number of early releases or temporary releases. [40200/20]
View answer601. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for Justice the number of victims of crime that have registered with the victim liaison service for updates on offenders; and the proportion of these victims to the total number of eligible victims to register for the service. [40201/20]
View answer602. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for Justice the number of those offenders released temporarily or released early that go on to repeat offend; and the number of these repeat offences that involve prior victims of their crime. [40202/20]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 600 to 602, inclusive, together.
I can advise the Deputy that as of 27 November 2020, the Irish Prison Service (IPS) Victim Liaison Service has 394 active victim liaison cases of prisoners currently in custody or released on license in the community under supervision. Of these 394 victim liaison cases, there are 539 registered victims as some prisoners have more than one registered victim.
A person may be eligible to receive information, if:
He or she is the victim of an offence for which the offender is imprisoned. The victim may nominate a representative that will receive information on their behalf, should they so wish;
He or she is not the victim but is an immediate family member or has a close relationship with someone who has died or was injured as a result of the offence.
I can advise the Deputy that the number of prisoners granted temporary release in 2018, 2019 and 2020 is set out in the table below. The table also includes the number of cases which were victim liaison cases and therefore the victims would have been informed of significant sentence management decisions including the approval of temporary release.
|
Number of persons accounting for incidence of Temporary Release (no registered victim) |
Number of persons accounting for incidence of Temporary Release (registered victim) |
|
|
Year 2018 |
2,671 |
135 |
|
Year 2019 |
2,767 |
153 |
|
Year 2020 (to date) |
1,473 |
110 |
|
Total |
6,911 |
398 |
The IPS Victim Liaison Officer undertakes to notify registered victims of significant developments in the management of the perpetrator's sentence. Significant developments include the following: inter-prison transfers; Parole Board hearings and decisions arising out of this process; temporary releases and expected release dates. Where victims make their views known to the IPS, they are always taken into account when making sentence management decisions, such as granting temporary release. Information and contact details in relation to the Victim Liaison Service are available on the IPS website at www.irishprisons.ie .
Since the inception of the IPS Victim Liaison Service in the early 2000s, the numbers of persons who have registered with the service have increased dramatically. The introduction of the EU Victim’s Directive and the measures put in place in the Criminal Justice system have resulted in a heightened awareness of victims’ rights and it is envisaged that the numbers accessing the service will continue to grow. To give an understanding of the increase in demand for the service, on the 1 January 2011 there were 188 victim contacts who had registered with IPS Victim Liaison Service since its inception. By 27 November 2020, this has risen to 1,280 registered victim contacts that have availed of the service.
It is important to note that the IPS Victim Liaison Service is a voluntary service and victims may register with the Service if they wish to be advised of the significant developments in a prisoner’s sentence as outlined above. There is no process in place whereby all victims are contacted as a matter of course as such a system could be perceived as intrusive and insensitive.
As the Deputy may be aware, I recently published Supporting A Victims Journey - A plan to help victims and vulnerable witnesses in sexual violence cases which is a detailed roadmap for the introduction of the recommendations contained in the O'Malley review which, when implemented, will protect vulnerable witnesses, during the investigation and prosecution of sexual offences. This work is being progressed as a priority under the Programme for Government commitments in consultation with our stakeholders.
As part of this work, I am committed to ensuring that the victim is kept informed of developments and that their is heard at all stages throughout the criminal justice process. We are mapping the journey that faces the victim, from commission of the crime, through the reporting and investigation process, the preparation of the prosecution and during the court proceedings, through to the verdict and sentencing, if that is the end result, and beyond regardless of the verdict. This is to ensue that the appropriate supports and information can be made available to victims at every step of the way.
