1100 prisoners to be released today.

Yes silverlining you’re right that it’s unusual normally for a first offender to get a custodial sentence, but with regard to the riots, we also know that many first offenders have indeed received prison sentences, notably a woman who wrote a post on Facebook encouraging people to join in the riots, which she took down two hours later. She was convicted (not sure of the offence) and is now in prison, I think, but not sure, for three months. It was her first offence! Did she really need to go to prison? Well either Keir Starmer thinks so, or the judiciary are interpreting his words too strongly. It’s one or the other!

This man was convicted because he was calling the police ‘scum’ and carrying a placard and making racist remarks, saying police were protecting rapists. He lived in Rotherham which of course has its own particular history with respect to grooming gangs, and maybe that history coloured his view. We don’t know. The fact remains that a man who behaved badly, but not violently, was given an extraordinarily long sentence, which has resulted in him taking his own life.

It’s very sad.

This whole releasing prisoners early was started by the Tories, Labour have simply followed through and knocked a percentage off the time needed to be served.

Blame both govts if you don’t agree.

Personally? I think we have far more people in prisons than required, prisons are overcrowded awful places for both prisoners and staff.

I firmly believe only those committing violent or sexual crimes, the remainder should be penalised using the proceeds of crime act and then serve reparation type community service, for a long time!

I think with extremely limited prison spaces Labour are between a rock and a hard place.

I agree and given they came into power after an early unexpected election in July, followed immediately by the long parliamentary summer break have had little time in which to resolve the many outstanding problems we have,

I am largely with you on this Cossy but we should be doing more about rehabilitation and education.

Give people skills, hope and support as well as "punishment".
Let them make a contribution and they will start to feel better about themselves and live up to their own dreams.
Few people really need incarceration.

When I worked with ex-offenders I definitely felt that the ones that "did best" had lots of support.

Fee people really need incarceration.

Did this man, who carried a placard, called the police ‘scum’ and made some offensive, racist comments, really need to be incarcerated for two years and eight months?

Surely a community order would have been more appropriate?

Prisoners have been sent to jail for a reason. If there is no space for new offenders we must either build new prisons or open those not being used. There's one on the Isle of Wight and Reading prison.

GrannyGravy13

Meanwhile Peter Lynch the grandfather with a heart condition sentenced to two years eight months for holding a placard denigrating the police and shouting abuse during the summer riots, killed himself in jail on Saturday.

I didn't realise he'd committed suicide; it was just report last night that he had died.

Was that his first offence? Really, it is no more than many people might have done over the years, what many anti-monarchists do regularly. If they were all sent to prison for holding placards and shouting we'd need a lot more prisons.
He was misguided and misinformed and what he did was wrong but it did seem unduly harsh; the judge told him he was inciting riot when he sentenced him.

He must have felt ashamed if that was his first offence

Its a bit more complicated than that: the riots in Rotherham were particularly violent.

Sky News

"He was one of more than 50 men jailed at Sheffield Crown Court following the Rotherham rioting,

which left 64 police officers injured, as well as four dogs and a horse

"Body-worn camera footage, played to Sheffield Crown Court in the summer, showed 61-year-old Lynch screaming

you are protecting people who are killing our kids and raping them

and "scum" at police with riot shield as they attacked and actually entered an asylum hotel.

However I do think in his case the judge should have taken his health conditions into consideration.

Generally - I wish there were adequate alternatives to prison such as has been suggested by posters, but currently there are not. In the very short term, care has to be taken as to who gets early release.

(I should have given the reference to the sky article, as it gives more details as to Lynch's role.
news.sky.com/story/grandfather-jailed-over-riot-outside-rotherham-hotel-dies-in-prison-13238291. )

It will be interesting to see what sentence the woman who threw milk shake over Nigel Farage gets.

Come to that, what about so called comedienne Jo Brand who said at the time “pity it wasn’t battery acid.” That comment was truly shocking yet she got away with it.

It is as bad as the woman mentioned earlier who posted terrible things about migrant hotels but then deleted them a couple of hours later. She got 2 years in jail, Brand didn’t even get a slap on the wrist and has never apologised.

Once more we have the early release prisoners being picked up in Bentleys, Rolls Royces and pimped up jeeps thanking the PM and basically taking the p* Their friends all wearing identical hoodies…

These videos are all over the internet, I wonder if they will be shown on any mainstream news programmes?

Grandmabatty

Tories released 10,000 prisoners early, source Financial Times. Did you complain about that?

Entirely different. It’s 1100 released today whereas the figure you quoted was over 9 months.

Those released today have had years knocked off their sentences. Under the End Of Custody Supervised Licence Scheme it began with just 18 days maximum knocked off which was later expanded to 35 days and 70 days NOT years.

I think this explains quite a lot about the scheme:

www.lawgazette.co.uk/practice-points/new-release-provisions-for-prisoners-and-what-they-mean-in-practice/5120702.article

There are 56 offences that are excluded from this scheme - they include:

Sexual offences

Domestic abuse offences, (including stalking, controlling and coercive behaviour in an intimate or family relationship and breach of a non-molestation order)

National security offences

Violent offences with a sentence of four years or more

If someone is returned to prison for breaching terms of licence then it is likely they will spend the remaining 60% or more of their sentence in custody.

The scheme is applied by offence - not by offender.

Lisaangel
Those released today have had years knocked off their sentences.

I think this is wrong.
Where did you find this info please?
It doesn't tally with what I've read.

Lisaangel10

It will be interesting to see what sentence the woman who threw milk shake over Nigel Farage gets.

Come to that, what about so called comedienne Jo Brand who said at the time “pity it wasn’t battery acid.” That comment was truly shocking yet she got away with it.

It is as bad as the woman mentioned earlier who posted terrible things about migrant hotels but then deleted them a couple of hours later. She got 2 years in jail, Brand didn’t even get a slap on the wrist and has never apologised.

Re the women mentioned - here are the facts:

Sweeney, from Church Lawton near Alsager, posted the comment on her local Facebook community page. The group she posted in usually carries items about local events and lost and found items, and has just over 5000 members. Several Facebook member reported her to the police.

The court heard she was responding to an online post picturing white and asian people helping to repair the mosque in Southport after it was damaged during violent disorder that followed the stabbings

The court was told Sweeney wrote:

It’s absolutely ridiculous. Don’t protect the mosque. Blow the mosque up with the adults in it

The judge said, "It was a truly terrible threat."

She didn't get 2 years, she got 15 months, which at 40% is about 6?

(from BBC report)

Fifteen months? Blimey I got it wrong then. I think I posted she got three months.
Nonetheless, a community sentence would have been far more appropriate. It was her first offence too.

To be honest, I think a lot of these rioters should have been given community sentences. Especially if it was a first offence. Offenders don’t usually get a prison sentence for a first offence, unless it’s very serious, such as murder or attempted murder. There are other offences that would attract a prison sentence too, if they were especially violent or fraud, high value theft etc.

These rioters were out of order and deserved to be brought to justice. However, most of them were guilty of afray, or shouting and inciting, and in my opinion, the judiciary should not have been instructed by our government to be especially hard on them. Those who were violent or tried to set fire to buildings deserve whatever they got, but the others, even children of 11/12/13 were treated harshly for political reasons.

Keir Starmer was DPP when the files of Mohammed Al Fayed were brought to the attention of Public Prosecutions and were dismissed! Keir Starmer claims that the files of this high profile man never crossed his desk. I don’t believe him. It’s a pity Starmer wasn’t so insistent on instant and hard justice being metered out to Al Fayed as he was on the rioters, one of whom has now committed suicide, presumably from the shame of being incarcerated in prison.

Wyllow3

Lisaangel10

It will be interesting to see what sentence the woman who threw milk shake over Nigel Farage gets.

Come to that, what about so called comedienne Jo Brand who said at the time “pity it wasn’t battery acid.” That comment was truly shocking yet she got away with it.

It is as bad as the woman mentioned earlier who posted terrible things about migrant hotels but then deleted them a couple of hours later. She got 2 years in jail, Brand didn’t even get a slap on the wrist and has never apologised.

Re the women mentioned - here are the facts:

Sweeney, from Church Lawton near Alsager, posted the comment on her local Facebook community page. The group she posted in usually carries items about local events and lost and found items, and has just over 5000 members. Several Facebook member reported her to the police.

The court heard she was responding to an online post picturing white and asian people helping to repair the mosque in Southport after it was damaged during violent disorder that followed the stabbings

The court was told Sweeney wrote:

It’s absolutely ridiculous. Don’t protect the mosque. Blow the mosque up with the adults in it

The judge said, "It was a truly terrible threat."

She didn't get 2 years, she got 15 months, which at 40% is about 6?

You’ve got the wrong person. I meant Lucy Connolly who was sentenced to 3.5 years reduced to 31 months on appeal. So she will serve just over 12 months.

I got my figures wrong. Sorry.

You obviously don’t have an opinion on Jo Brand’s vile comments.

Shinamae

“Going to hell in a handcart” springs to mind…🤨

You mean labour?

Lisaangel10

It will be interesting to see what sentence the woman who threw milk shake over Nigel Farage gets.

Come to that, what about so called comedienne Jo Brand who said at the time “pity it wasn’t battery acid.” That comment was truly shocking yet she got away with it.

It is as bad as the woman mentioned earlier who posted terrible things about migrant hotels but then deleted them a couple of hours later. She got 2 years in jail, Brand didn’t even get a slap on the wrist and has never apologised.

I certainly hope she gets a couple of years at least- disgraceful what she did, because a lot on here don’t care for NF - they will probably think it was neither here or there what she did & she should walk free. I hope they throw the book at her.

1100 prisoners were released yesterday as part of the government’s early than ever release scheme.
Well obviously we’re all a lot safer on the streets now.
Not!

Mt61

Lisaangel10

It will be interesting to see what sentence the woman who threw milk shake over Nigel Farage gets.

Come to that, what about so called comedienne Jo Brand who said at the time “pity it wasn’t battery acid.” That comment was truly shocking yet she got away with it.

It is as bad as the woman mentioned earlier who posted terrible things about migrant hotels but then deleted them a couple of hours later. She got 2 years in jail, Brand didn’t even get a slap on the wrist and has never apologised.

I certainly hope she gets a couple of years at least- disgraceful what she did, because a lot on here don’t care for NF - they will probably think it was neither here or there what she did & she should walk free. I hope they throw the book at her.

Sadly, yes Mt61 you are probably right. There are people who are so full of hatred that they would condone what she did. The thing is, it could have been anything that she was throwing. Including bleach or battery acid (which was Jo Brand’s preference).

I don’t know how any human being can even say such a thing against another human. Most of us will have seen TV footage and newspaper reports about people disfigured for life after such dreadful attacks.

Can you imagine any silly sod throwing milkshake at Starmer - probably get a life sentence ( mind you, he probably won’t bother, as he gets his suits for free)

Mt61

Can you imagine any silly sod throwing milkshake at Starmer - probably get a life sentence ( mind you, he probably won’t bother, as he gets his suits for free)