In 2003, Imprisonment for Public Protection sentences (IPP sentences) were introduced by the then Home Secretary, David Blunkett. These sentences were for an indeterminate amount of time beyond their tariff, and were intended to protect the public from serious criminals - people whose crimes were not serious enough to warrant a life sentence, but were still considered a danger to the public; therefore, they could be kept in custody until the threat had been reduced enough for them to re-enter society (based on reports from periodical assessments by psychiatrists and prison guards). Initially the Home Office expected to impose this sentence on only around 900 people.
However, it transpired that over ten times this estimate were actually given these sentences. In 2012, these sentences were abolished under the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012. However, this did not apply retrospectively, and there are still around 3,500 prisoners serving indeterminate sentences, 81% of whom have passed their tariff. Many of these prisoners are serving time for fairly minor convictions when compared to the crimes these sentences were introduced for, and many that have been released have be called back for things that pose little or no threat to the public, such as arriving back at a hostel drunk.
There is currently a major campaign going by the families of remaining prisoners to release them, and I feel as though the most effective way to emphasise this point is to share with you this ten-minute film:
As you will see if you have watched it, this is not so much about a malicious plot against anyone, as much as it is a significantly large group of people who have slipped through the cracks and been forgotten about by the establishment.
But there is an ever-growing movement against it, and I've really written this blog to try to get more people onside. Firstly, I recommend signing this petition if you have not already done so. Secondly, on 23 May there is a protest in London, marching from Parliament to the Ministry of Justice. I intend to go to this if I can, and I'd encourage others to as well. Unfortunately the protest doesn't seem to have a Facebook event page, but you can RSVP on the 38 Degrees website and put yourself forward for regular updates on this.
It must be stressed that this is not about defending any of the actions that may have been committed by these prisoners in the past. It is more an objection to the clumsy sentencing of people to life through the backdoor. Any reasonable person should see that no matter what someone has done, a sentence should be reflective, determinate and not subject to change arbitrarily. Let's all come together and make a positive change through pressure on the powers that be to end the plight of these prisoners for good.
Link to official campaign blog:
http://ippfanilycampaign.blogspot.co.uk
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