Currently, most prisoners could be released two-thirds of the way through their sentence but under new proposals the sentences would be shorter but post-release supervision increased.
The Home Affairs Committee is also calling on the Royal Court to review their sentencing policy for drug traffickers and question whether cannabis should be downgraded and whether speed cameras should be introduced.
Under the committee’s proposals, all prisoners leaving halfway through their sentence would be released after a careful risk assessment by a parole board and then supervised by a probation officer in the community until the full term ended.
If they failed to abide by conditions they would be returned to prison.
Committee president Senator Wendy Kinnard said the proposed system of discretionary supervised release would better protect the community and help improve the rehabilitation of prisoners.
‘Currently, when prisoners are released after serving two-thirds of their sentence there is no supervision for them, no matter what risk they pose,’ she said.
