Latest news with #VictimNotificationScheme
The Courier
24-04-2025
- The Courier
Victim's family call for Angus killer Tasmin Glass to finish sentence
The parents of murdered Angus man Steven Donaldson are calling for killer Tasmin Glass to serve her full 10-year sentence after she was sent back to prison following parole. Bill and Pam Donaldson have written to the Parole Board for Scotland after it was revealed to them that Glass was sent back to prison at the beginning of April. The couple, whose son Steven was killed in Kirriemuir in 2018, were informed by letter that Glass's parole her licence had been revoked and she was back in custody for breaching her conditions. Glass was released from prison on parole in July last year having served just half of her 10-year-sentence for culpable homicide. The letter from the Victim Notification Scheme does not say what the breach was but the Donaldsons suspect Glass entered Kirriemuir or Dundee, which was banned in her parole conditions. Glass has a legal right to be considered for immediate re-release but the Donaldsons are pleading for her to complete the remainder of her sentence. They have written to the parole board outlining their position and said they have not yet been given any notification of a new hearing for Glass. In their letter the couple say they are not surprised that Glass has been returned to prison. They describe her demeanour during the trial and after as 'arrogant and totally devoid of remorse for her actions.' The letter continues: 'We do not know what action caused her to have her liberty taken from her but believe that her being so disrespectful to the authorities concerned should be taken into consideration when her parole hearing comes up again. 'Her lack of respect, for both the parole board and the Scottish Prison Service, shows she cannot be trusted and placed back in the community.' Glass was convicted of culpable homicide in 2019 for her 'pivotal role' in the brutal murder of Steven at Kinnordy Nature Reserve in Kirriemuir. Co-accused Callum Davidson and Steven Dickie were both convicted of murder. It is understood Glass had been living in East Lothian since her release. But the Donaldsons believe if she is re-released again she will break her conditions again. The letter said: 'We do not want her given the opportunity to break her licence conditions and come anywhere near our family or be seen in Dundee or Angus. 'The chance of her being released back into society should now be taken away from her and she should now be required to finish the sentence given to her in custody. ' Glass cases were deferred on numerous occasions before her eventual release last year, after serving just half of her 10-year sentence for culpable homicide for her involvement in Steven's murder in Kirriemuir in 2018. The Courier's campaign, A Voice for Victims, has been calling for reform to the parole system in Scotland to highlight the trauma suffered by victims and their families.
BBC News
05-03-2025
- Politics
- BBC News
New proposals to expand victim notification scheme
More victims could be given access to information about the person who committed a crime against them and have a say on decisions about their release under new government people can register with the Victim Notification Scheme (VNS) if the offender in their case has been sentenced to 18 months or more in prison, or with the Victim Information Scheme if the sentence was less than 18 proposals would see all victims having access to the same information regardless of the length of the offender's Scottish government said the reforms put victims rights at the "heart of the justice system". The plans would also give all victims the right to make representations where an offender is being considered for release on licence – and on the licence conditions they would like to see the moment this entitlement only applies where an offender was sentenced to four years or more in Minister Siobhian Brown said: "These changes recognise that a victim's rights should not hinge on the length of sentence that the perpetrator is serving."We want victims to know their rights to receive information and to be supported to make informed choices on whether they wish to do so. We will continue to work closely with victims' representatives as we take forward these reforms."The range of information available through the VNS for victims of offenders in the forensic mental health system who are subject to a compulsion order and restriction order would also be latest plans are being introduced as proposed amendments to the Victims, Witnesses, and Justice Reform (Scotland) Bill, the next stage of which begins in the Scottish Parliament next bill also proposes a pilot scheme for juryless rape trials and abolishing the "not proven" verdict. The reform proposals, which will be voted on by MSPs, come amid a scheme which to release a number of criminals from jail early to help ease the prison Support Scotland, said they welcome the move but "many more improvements are urgently needed".Chief executive Kate Wallace said: "It has been nearly two years now since improvements to the VNS were recommended to the Scottish government through an independent review in May 2023."While early release schemes have passed swiftly through Holyrood in the last year, improvements to the VNS have languished while hundreds of prisoners were released early - with only 2% of their victims notified in last summer's emergency early release scheme."
Yahoo
13-02-2025
- Yahoo
Victims being ignored by early release, says charity
Tackling prison overcrowding by the early release of inmates is being put ahead of victims' and public safety, a charity has said. Up to 390 prisoners sentenced to less than four years in jail are to be released after serving 40% of their sentence, rather than 50%, under the latest move from the Scottish government to reduce inmate numbers. They will be released in three tranches over a six-week period, starting on 18 February, with prisoners serving sentences for domestic abuse or sexual offences excluded. Victim Support Scotland (VSS) warned early release programmes had "raised anxiety among victims generally" and could erode trust in the justice system. Why are there so many people in Scotland's jails? Prison boss: I'd struggle to survive my own jail "We're seeing a situation where resources are taking priority over victim and public safety, it's not a position we are supportive of at all," VSS chief executive Kate Wallace said. "The big concern is that it erodes trust in the criminal justice system as a whole and the problem with that is it can put victims off from reporting in the future. "They've told us they feel de-prioritised in all these conversations and their safety is not a priority over prison officers and others due to the overcrowding crisis in prisons. "We want people to come forward and report crime but these policy decisions and the way they've been done don't help with that." According to the latest figures, there were 8,332 in Scotland's prisons – above the target operating capacity of 8,007. Last summer 477 prisoners were released early to ease overcrowding, with 61 of them later returned to custody. Linda Pollock, deputy chief executive of the Scottish Prison Service (SPS), said staff were focusing on rehabilitation work with prisoners whose release was imminent. She conceded that prison overcrowding had limited the amount of time available for such work but added: "We are prioritising those who are going to be released. "We saw in the release last summer a small number of people have reoffended but we have worked with partners and learned from that," she added. The Scottish government said victims who have already signed up to the Victim Notification Scheme will be told automatically by SPS if there is a change to the date of release of the prisoner in their case. Victim Support Scotland said the onus is currently on victims to sign up to the scheme and it wants to see a more "proactive" system. Ms Wallace said: "Often victims are asked quite early on in the justice process if they want to sign up to the notification scheme. There's no follow up if they change their mind. "Many won't remember if they signed up to the scheme or not so if you're not sure contact either SPS or VSS or Children First and we can ask on your behalf. "The last thing victims want is to bump into the person who committed a crime against them without anticipating that. It causes huge anxiety and trauma. "They want to know when that person is being released and if there are conditions on that release in advance so they can plan for their own safety and get support." A Scottish government spokesperson said: "In line with trends seen elsewhere in the UK, Scotland's prison population has significantly grown in recent years and, consequently, this rise has impacted prisons and the wider justice system. "We will continue to work closely with victim support organisations to ensure that accessible information is available to victims on the change to the release point for short-term prisoners." Our rapists should admit guilt before they get parole Father's anger at 'zero' action on Michelle's Law Early release for long-term prisoners is horrifying, says victim
BBC News
13-02-2025
- BBC News
Victims being ignored by early prisoner release, says charity
Tackling prison overcrowding by the early release of inmates is being put ahead of victims' and public safety, a charity has to 390 prisoners sentenced to less than four years in jail are to be released after serving 40% of their sentence, rather than 50%, under the latest move from the Scottish government to reduce inmate will be released in three tranches over a six-week period, starting on 18 February, with prisoners serving sentences for domestic abuse or sexual offences Support Scotland (VSS) warned early release programmes had "raised anxiety among victims generally" and could erode trust in the justice system. "We're seeing a situation where resources are taking priority over victim and public safety, it's not a position we are supportive of at all," VSS chief executive Kate Wallace said."The big concern is that it erodes trust in the criminal justice system as a whole and the problem with that is it can put victims off from reporting in the future."They've told us they feel de-prioritised in all these conversations and their safety is not a priority over prison officers and others due to the overcrowding crisis in prisons."We want people to come forward and report crime but these policy decisions and the way they've been done don't help with that."According to the latest figures, there were 8,332 in Scotland's prisons – above the target operating capacity of 8, summer 477 prisoners were released early to ease overcrowding, with 61 of them later returned to custody. Linda Pollock, deputy chief executive of the Scottish Prison Service (SPS), said staff were focusing on rehabilitation work with prisoners whose release was conceded that prison overcrowding had limited the amount of time available for such work but added: "We are prioritising those who are going to be released."We saw in the release last summer a small number of people have reoffended but we have worked with partners and learned from that," she added. The Scottish government said victims who have already signed up to the Victim Notification Scheme will be told automatically by SPS if there is a change to the date of release of the prisoner in their Support Scotland said the onus is currently on victims to sign up to the scheme and it wants to see a more "proactive" Wallace said: "Often victims are asked quite early on in the justice process if they want to sign up to the notification scheme. There's no follow up if they change their mind."Many won't remember if they signed up to the scheme or not so if you're not sure contact either SPS or VSS or Children First and we can ask on your behalf."The last thing victims want is to bump into the person who committed a crime against them without anticipating that. It causes huge anxiety and trauma."They want to know when that person is being released and if there are conditions on that release in advance so they can plan for their own safety and get support."A Scottish government spokesperson said: "In line with trends seen elsewhere in the UK, Scotland's prison population has significantly grown in recent years and, consequently, this rise has impacted prisons and the wider justice system."We will continue to work closely with victim support organisations to ensure that accessible information is available to victims on the change to the release point for short-term prisoners."
Yahoo
29-01-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Up to 390 inmates to be released early in Scotland
Up to 390 prisoners will be released early starting from next month in the latest move from the Scottish government to reduce the prison population. Emergency legislation was passed last year which allows eligible inmates sentenced to less than four years in jail to be released after 40% of their sentence, rather than 50%. The law will take effect from 11 February, and will see an estimated 260 to 390 prisoners eligible for release immediately. They will be released in three tranches over a period of six weeks, starting on 18 February. Justice Secretary Angela Constance said the move should result in a "sustained reduction" in prisoner numbers. Prisoners serving sentences for domestic abuse or sexual offences will not be eligible to be freed early. The next two tranches of prisoner releases will come on 4-6 March and 18-20 March. Constance said: "While not a complete solution, this act will bring sustained reduction to prisoner numbers so the prison estate can continue to function effectively." She added: "I absolutely recognise that the release of prisoners can be distressing for victims of crime and that changing the release point for short-term prisoners has the potential to raise questions and cause concern. "That is why we will continue to work closely with victim support organisations to ensure that accessible information is available to victims on the change to the release point for short-term prisoners." The government said victims who have already signed up to the Victim Notification Scheme will be told automatically by the Scottish Prison Service (SPS) if there is a change to the date of release of the prisoner in their case. Victims who are not signed up can contact the SPS directly to receive information. Alternatively, they can nominate Victim Support Scotland, Rape Crisis Scotland, ASSIST or Children First to receive information about prisoner release on their behalf. The law change in Scotland replicates a change made south of the border by the UK government as minsters grapple with overcrowded jails. In the long term, the Scottish government said it could result in a sustained reduction of about 5% to the sentenced prison population. According to the latest figures, there were 8,223 in Scotland's prisons – above the target operating capacity of 8,007. In the summer, almost 500 people were let out early under an emergency scheme introduced by the Scottish government. It involved prisoners who had been sentenced to less than four years in jail and who had less than 180 days still to serve. But it was revealed in September that the prison population was already higher than it had been before the early release. In October, the Scottish government shelved proposals for the automatic early release of long-term prisoners due to concerns from victims of crime. The Prison Officers' Association supported the new early release law, which it described as "a step in the right direction in helping to reduce prisoner numbers". But the Association of Scottish Police Superintendents said the new legislation would see the public "being put at risk". Scottish Conservative justice spokesperson Liam Kerr said: "The imminent introduction of the SNP's reckless early release scheme is confirmation of their latest shameful betrayal of victims." Why are there so many people in Scotland's jails? More than one in 10 early release prisoners back in jail
