Prisoners released early for public holidays, as thousands of jail sentences are reduced

Victorian prisoners due for release on Easter, Christmas and New Year are being set free from jail early, with more than 60,000 days collectively cut from criminals’ sentences. This is why.

Victorian prisoners due for release on Easter, Christmas and New Year are being set free from jail early as it is revealed more than 60,000 days were collectively cut from criminals’ sentences.

Hundreds of prisoners were given festive season sentencing discounts — totalling more than 1000 days — ­between 2010 and 2018.

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Each inmate, including some in the maximum security Port Phillip and Barwon prisons, had one to five days sliced from their sentence.

Corrections Victoria told the Herald Sun that criminals bound for freedom on public holidays were released early because services, including supermarkets, banks and Centrelink, weren’t open.

Victorian prisoners due to be released on public holidays are set free early. Picture: News Corp

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The authority claimed it restricted “the ability of prisoners to manage their personal affairs and increases the risk of reoffending”.

Documents obtained under Freedom of Information also revealed more than 60,000 “emergency management days” were shaved from prisoners’ sentences over the past nine years.

Inmates’ sentences may be reduced for good behaviour during emergency situations or industrial disputes where warders walk off the job.

A fire at Port Phillip Prison in late 2017 sparked a surge in applications last year, during which almost 30,000 days were collectively lopped from hundreds of sentences.

In 2012, prisoners submitted more than 18,000 applications for sentencing reductions — totalling more than 26,700 days — during widespread industrial action under the previous Coalition government.

A Corrections Victoria spokesman said only prisoners of “good behaviour” were given “short” sentencing discounts.

Emergency services battle a fire at Port Phillip Prison in 2017. Picture: Nicole Garmston

“Emergency management days are critical to maintaining order at times when the ­capacity of the prison to ­respond to emergencies may be compromised,” he said.

A log of emergency management days included a one-day reduction for a Langi Kal Kal inmate who administered first aid.

Two days were twice lopped off sentences of Fulham prisoners because of a sentence “miscalculation” and “calculation discrepancy”.

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Opposition corrections spokesman David Southwick said Victorians “rightly expected” convicted criminals to serve their full sentence.

“Giving jail discounts of nearly 30,000 days in just one year seems overly generous to criminals by the Andrews Labor Government,” he said.

But Corrections Minister Ben Carroll said the former Coalition government handed out almost 30,000 reductions because of industrial action.

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