A prisoner in the last episode was badly let down by his probation officer, whose complete failure to address his offending with him made it impossible to judge what factors might affect his future risk of re-offending and endangering the public. This meant that his parole hearing had to be adjourned and postponed for several more months. Unfair to prisoners who have worked hard within prison to turn things around in the hope of early release & a new start.
The probation officer’s excuse was a her huge workload and the prisoner’s reluctance to address his offending (which, if true, is a big red flag), but the prisoner claimed he’d only ever spent 45 minutes with her.
It can be argued that prisoners learn how to say the right things to convince the parole board that they’re reformed characters, and many are returned to prison soon after release due to re-offending, but the system exists and should at least give prisoners a fair hearing.