Does indeterminate effectively mean life behind bars?
Not necessarily. Should the defendant no longer be considered to pose a threat to the public, then he will be released. Once behind bars, and having served their minimum tariff, the offender must prove through special classes and other intensive supervision, that they pose less of a risk than when they entered jail. In theory this means that the reformed prisoner will be out when they have shown they have reformed – and those who have not addressed their offending will stay locked away. Does it work this way in practice? This is the big controversy with indeterminate sentences. The Prisons watchdog says there are many IPP inmates who have not been properly assessed for release because of a lack of resources and chronic overcrowding in jails. In a major report into IPPs, the prisons and probations watchdog said that a “perfect storm” of circumstances had been created around the sentences and the system’s inability to manage offenders effectively. What do the prison reform lobby think? T
