Latest news with #prisonreform
Yahoo
2 hours ago
- General
- Yahoo
Give prison officers the lethal weapons ‘they need', Jenrick says
Shadow justice secretary Robert Jenrick has said prison officers dealing with violent inmates must get the lethal weapons 'they need' as he defended calls for specialist armed teams in jails. The Conservatives said secure armouries should be introduced at maximum security jails to be used as a last resort. They have also called for high-collar stab vests to be provided to frontline officers immediately, citing the threat from inmates after recent attacks on prison officers. Robert Jenrick commissioned counter-extremism expert and former prison governor Ian Acheson to carry out a rapid review into the violence (Yui Mok/PA) Mr Jenrick said there is a growing risk that a prison officer could be kidnapped or murdered in the line of duty without his proposed reforms. ADVERTISEMENT 'We have to stop pussy-footing around Islamist extremists and violent offenders in jails,' he said in a statement. 'Give them Tasers, give them stun grenades, give them baton rounds and give them access to lethal weapons,' he told the Sunday Morning With Trevor Phillips programme on Sky News. 'Let's ensure the officers have what they need,' he added. 'The Chief Inspector of Prisons himself has said that he can see a situation where people like Islamist terrorists get access through drones to weapons, to explosives, hold prison officers hostage, even kill officers. 'This is going to happen unless the Government take action.' Mr Jenrick commissioned counter-extremism expert and former prison governor Ian Acheson to carry out a rapid review into the violence. Mr Acheson said: 'The threat to officer safety is now intolerable and must be met decisively by the Government. ADVERTISEMENT 'The balance inside too many of our prisons has shifted away from control by the state to mere containment and the price is soaring levels of staff assaults and wrecked rehabilitation.' It come after attacks by high-profile inmates. Manchester Arena plotter Hashem Abedi targeted prison staff with boiling oil and homemade weapons in a planned ambush last month. Southport killer Axel Rudakubana (Merseyside Police/PA) Southport killer Axel Rudakubana allegedly attacked a prison officer at HMP Belmarsh earlier this month by pouring boiling water over them. Justice Secretary Shabana Mahmood has ordered a snap review into whether stab vests should be used more routinely, and a trial that will give specialised officers dealing with serious incidents Tasers is due to be launched this summer. Officers already have access to batons and Pava spray, a synthetic form of pepper spray, in men's prisons in the public sector. ADVERTISEMENT Asked whether he could see that the public would want him to take responsibility for failing prisons as a former government minister, Mr Jenrick told the BBC's Sunday Morning With Laura Kuenssberg programme: 'We should have done more, but look, what Labour are doing now is making the problem worse, and they are reaching for the easy lever of letting prisoners out early.' More than 10,000 prisoners were released up to 70 days early by the Tory government, according to Ministry of Justice figures. Under the End of Custody Supervised Licence (ECSL) scheme, announced in October 2023, some prisoners could be freed 18 days before their conditional release date. That was increased to 35 days in March, and then to 70 days in May. The number of ECSL releases between October 17 and June 30 was 10,083, the data shows.
BreakingNews.ie
4 hours ago
- General
- BreakingNews.ie
Tories in call to arm specialist prison officers to counter Islamist gangs
The Conservatives have called for some UK prison officers to have access to firearms to counter 'out of control' Islamist gangs and violent prisoners. Conservative shadow justice secretary Robert Jenrick said specialist teams should be armed with Tasers, stun grenades, and in some circumstances, lethal weapons. Advertisement He also called for high-collar stab vests to be provided to frontline officers right away, citing the threat from inmates after recent attacks on prison officers. 'Islamist gangs and violent prisoners in our jails are out of control. It's a national security emergency, but the Government is dithering. 'If they don't act soon, there is a very real risk that a prison officer is kidnapped or murdered in the line of duty, or that a terrorist attack is directed from inside prison,' he wrote in The Telegraph. Kemi Badenoch and Robert Jenrick (PA) He said he had commissioned former prison governor Ian Acheson to carry out a rapid review. Advertisement 'We have to stop pussy-footing around Islamist extremists and violent offenders in jails,' he wrote. 'That means arming specialist prison officer teams with Tasers and stun grenades, as well as giving them access to lethal weapons in exceptional circumstances. 'If prison governors can't easily keep terrorist influencers and radicalising inmates apart from the mainstream prisoners they target, then we don't control our prisons – they do. We must take back control and restore order by giving officers the powers and protection they need.' It come after attacks by high-profile inmates. Advertisement Manchester Arena plotter Hashem Abedi targeted prison staff with boiling oil and homemade weapons in a planned ambush last month. Southport killer Axel Rudakubana allegedly attacked a prison officer at HMP Belmarsh earlier this month by pouring boiling water over them. UK justice secretary Shabana Mahmood has ordered a snap review into whether stab vests should be used more routinely, and a trial that will give specialised officers dealing with serious incidents Tasers is due to be launched this summer. Officers already have access to batons and Pava spray, a synthetic form of pepper spray, in men's prisons in the public sector. Advertisement A British Ministry of Justice source said the UK government has a 'zero-tolerance approach' to violence and extremism in prisons. 'The last Government added just 500 cells to our prison estate, and left our jails in total crisis. In fourteen years, they closed 1,600 cells in the high-security estate, staff assaults soared, and experienced officers left in droves. Now the arsonists are pretending to be firefighters. 'This Government is cleaning up the mess the last Government left behind. We are building new prisons, with 2,400 new cells opened since we took office. And we take a zero-tolerance approach to violence and extremism inside.'
The Guardian
9 hours ago
- General
- The Guardian
Arm prison officers against violent and terrorist inmates, says Tories' Jenrick
The Conservatives have called for some prison officers to have access to firearms to counter 'out of control' Islamist gangs and violent prisoners. The shadow justice secretary, Robert Jenrick, said specialist teams should be armed with Tasers, stun grenades, and in some circumstances lethal weapons. He also called for high-collar stab vests to be provided to frontline officers right away, citing the threat from inmates after recent attacks on prison officers. 'Islamist gangs and violent prisoners in our jails are out of control. It's a national security emergency, but the government is dithering,' he said in the Telegraph. 'If they don't act soon, there is a very real risk that a prison officer is kidnapped or murdered in the line of duty, or that a terrorist attack is directed from inside prison.' Jenrick said he had commissioned Ian Acheson, a former prison governor, to carry out a rapid review. 'We have to stop pussy-footing around Islamist extremists and violent offenders in jails,' Jenrick wrote. 'That means arming specialist prison officer teams with Tasers and stun grenades, as well as giving them access to lethal weapons in exceptional circumstances. 'If prison governors can't easily keep terrorist influencers and radicalising inmates apart from the mainstream prisoners they target, then we don't control our prisons – they do. We must take back control and restore order by giving officers the powers and protection they need.' It come after attacks by high-profile inmates. The Manchester Arena plotter Hashem Abedi targeted prison staff with boiling oil and homemade weapons in a planned ambush last month. The Southport killer Axel Rudakubana allegedly attacked a prison officer with boiling water at HMP Belmarsh this month. The justice secretary, Shabana Mahmood, has ordered a snap review into whether stab vests should be used more routinely, and a trial that will give specialised officers dealing with serious incidents Tasers is due to be launched in the summer. Officers already have access to batons and Pava spray, a synthetic form of pepper spray, in men's prisons in the public sector. A Ministry of Justice source said the government has a 'zero-tolerance approach' to violence and extremism in prisons. 'The last government added just 500 cells to our prison estate, and left our jails in total crisis. In 14 years they closed 1,600 cells in the high-security estate, staff assaults soared, and experienced officers left in droves. Now the arsonists are pretending to be firefighters. 'This government is cleaning up the mess the last government left behind. We are building new prisons, with 2,400 new cells opened since we took office. And we take a zero-tolerance approach to violence and extremism inside.'
Yahoo
10 hours ago
- General
- Yahoo
Larry Hoover's family, supporters lobby for release in Springfield
The Brief Larry Hoover's family and supporters visited the state capital on Saturday to ask Governor Pritzker for the Chicago gang leader's release. Hoover's prison sentence was commuted by President Trump on Wednesday; he has been serving a life sentence for a 1970s murder conviction, as well as an additional life sentence for running a criminal enterprise from behind bars in the 1990s. Hoover remains eligible for parole in Illinois and has a hearing later this year. SPRINGFIELD, Ill. - Larry Hoover's family and supporters visited the state capital on Saturday to ask Governor Pritzker for the Chicago gang leader's release. What we know Hoover's prison sentence was commuted by President Trump on Wednesday. The co-founder of the Gangster Disciples, a Chicago street gang, has been serving a life sentence for a 1970s murder conviction, as well as an additional life sentence for running a criminal enterprise from behind bars in the 1990s. Trump's move commutes the federal sentence of the former kingpin and prison entrepreneur. However, Hoover must still serve his lengthy Illinois sentence. In front of the governor's office, Illinois Rep. Kam Buckner, Illinois Rep. Marcus Evans, Senator Willie Preston, Senator Lakesia Collins, Ja'Mal Green, along with Hoover's wife, sons and grandchildren urged Pritzker to "bring (Hoover) home to his family," according to a press release from the family. Ja'Mal Green posted a photo of himself and the group in Springfield on his Facebook page, saying "Springfield, we're here to win the hearts of our legislators and Governor to Free Larry Hoover!" Hoover remains eligible for parole in Illinois and has a hearing later this year. Pritzker declined to comment on Thursday. What they're saying "Larry Hoover is a human being. He's not a symbol. He is a human being of struggle. He is a husband, father, a grandfather. His kids, his grandkids are all college graduates. He has an amazing family around him," Ja'Mal Green said. "He's a human who cares about his family, about the community, about life itself. He is rehabilitated and not the 22-year-old man he is today at 74 years old." The backstory The Gangster Disciples remain one of Chicago's most notorious street gangs. At its height under Hoover's leadership, the gang generated about $100 million each year in cocaine and heroin sales, according to federal prosecutors. "He was the undisputed head of the organization. He ran it. Everybody reported to him," said Ron Safer, a former U.S. assistant attorney who led the prosecution of Hoover. "The Gangster Disciples were monolithic, ruthlessly efficient." Hoover ordered the death of a gang member in 1973 and was convicted of murder. He was sentenced to 150 to 200 years in a state prison. But prosecutors say that didn't stop him from spreading the gang's vast influence. For more than two decades, he ran the Gangster Disciples from behind bars, expanding it to chapters in more than two dozen states. He was eventually charged with dozens of federal crimes, including engaging in a continuing criminal enterprise. A federal jury found him guilty in 1997. He was sentenced to life the following year and sent to the "supermax" prison in Florence, Colorado, where he has spent years in solitary confinement. Hoover's many previous attempts for a sentence reduction or parole have been swiftly rejected, including a federal judge denying Hoover's request for a lower sentence in 2021. Last year, the Illinois Prisoner Review Board unanimously rejected his bid for parole and before that in 2022 with a 10-1 vote. Attorneys have said Hoover became a symbol of gang culture, making it hard for courts to consider resentencing him, but that Hoover has since denounced gangs and is a changed man. The Source Information for this story was provided by a press release from Hoover's family, social media posts and previous Fox 32 reporting.
Telegraph
14 hours ago
- General
- Telegraph
The Government's ill-judged prisoner-release scheme puts the public at risk
SIR – I, along with the majority of my countrymen, am appalled by the Government's decision to release certain prisoners early (' Met chief: Starmer's early release scheme will lead to more crime ', report, May 28). This is to compensate for the shortage of prison spaces, as our population grows ever larger, in part due to poorly controlled immigration. First, the punishment meted out by the courts should match the gravity of the crime. Stricter sentencing would surely act as a deterrent to help reduce criminality, whereas the present system allows certain sentences to be commuted or for the prisoner to be granted parole. This in itself creates too much recidivism, and it is now to be exacerbated by the early release of offenders, many of whom are likely to reoffend. This is not the decision of a sensible government that is weighing up all the facts with balanced judgment. Secondly, we should consider our already overworked police officers, many of whom do a fantastic job and lack the high regard they deserve, particularly given the much wider range of policing responsibilities they are now expected to undertake compared to 20 years ago. Policing the streets is of paramount importance, especially in inner-city areas, where regard for the law is often lax. Presumably the Government will now expect the police to monitor those on early release. What has happened to our once highly regarded system of justice and policing? It appears to be yet another casualty of this ludicrous Labour Government. Tony Millard Redhill, Surrey SIR – Week after week, our local magistrates' court deals with an endless list of people who have been caught driving drunk or high on drugs. At present, they are fined and disqualified from driving for a period. Isn't it time that our society made people wholly responsible for their actions, by imposing a lifetime driving ban on them if caught? It may make them think twice before getting behind the wheel when they are drunk or stoned, and consider the devastating impact that such selfish behaviour could have on others. It would also save the magistrates from having to deal with repeat offenders. The roads are dangerous enough without people who view driving as a right, rather than as a privilege with enormous responsibilities. Andy Breare Plymouth, Devon
