Parole Getting Harder

The Parole Board is turning down more parole cases than it was four years ago, according to statistics released by Justice Minister, Tony Ryall today.

The statistics were included in a report requested by the Minister into the Peter Howse case. Peter Howse is now serving sentences for kidnapping and sexual violation, committed following his release on parole in 1995.

"In 1996 the Parole Board implemented a new method of assessing inmates for parole, called "Structured Decision Making", said Mr Ryall.

"The new method provides the Board a more accurate picture of an inmate's risk of violent (re)offending, and partly as a result the Board has become more conservative in its decisions.

"Since 1995 the percentage of parole refused or postponed has increased from 62.3 percent to 70.4 percent in 1998. Consequently, cases approved have fallen from 32.0 percent to 23.1 percent over the same period", Mr Ryall concluded.