THE MOTHER of a young man serving time in prison has called for the abolition of open-ended jail terms, claiming he has served more than three times his expected sentence.
At a protest outside HM Prison, Cardiff, Shirley Lloyd urged the UK Government to review the issue of existing Imprisonment for Public Protection (IPP) orders, which allow people to be detained until they persuade the authorities they are no longer a threat to society.
The 51-year-old, who organised the demonstration, claimed the orders should be implemented for certain crimes but questioned their use in cases such as that of her son, Shaun Lloyd.
His family claim that Lloyd, of Adamsdown, Cardiff, could have expected a two-and-a-half-year sentence for street robbery in 2006 if the judge had not implemented an IPP.
Now approaching his 25th birthday, Shaun, who is being held in Wolverhampton, is unlikely to be considered for parole for another two years.
Shirley said: "I'm not saying he didn't deserve prison - what he did was very wrong. But these indeterminate sentences were meant for murderers, paedophiles and rapists, not to jail 18-year-olds for the best part of a decade."
She said Shaun had used his time in prison to undertake a number of courses and was not a danger to the public.
"Shaun has done everything the authorities asked of him, like all his courses in anger management, thinking skills, English and maths and can't do any more," she said.
"He's not a danger to the public and has served his sentence time and again, yet they refuse him parole fearing he might re-offend so they keep him inside with no light at the end of the tunnel. It's a life sentence that's swallowed his youth."
A Ministry of Justice spokesman said he could not discuss individual cases. But he added: "We intend to replace the widely criticised IPP system, which the public doesn't have confidence in, with a new regime of tough, determinate sentences.
"The new regime will restore clarity, coherence and common sense to sentencing, rid us of the inconsistent and confusing IPP regime and give victims a clearer understanding of how long offenders will actually serve in prison."
(c) 2012 ProQuest Information and Learning Company; All Rights Reserved.
Having read many IPP blogs and accounts, I am appalled that this is considered Justice in the UK.
ReplyDeleteYou do the crime, you do the time (preferably with re-education + positive self contemplation).. but trashing young lives indefinitly is torture for them and their families if the sentence has no forseeable end. No wonder prison suicides are on the increase. Put on end to this expensive tragedy NOW!