Prisoner\u27s Rights and the Separation of Powers: Comparing Approaches in Ireland, Scotland and England and Wales.

The decision of Hogan J in Kinsella v. Governor of Mountjoy Prison [2011] IEHC 235 (hereinafter Kinsella) is an important development in the protection of prisoners’ constitutional rights in Ireland. The decision, which found that a prisoner’s right to have his person protected had been breached by his detention in a padded cell with a cardboard box for use as a toilet in conditions amounting to a form of sensory deprivation, may represent a new direction for prison law jurisprudence. The judgment is also of significance for its analysis of the circumstances in which conditions of detention can give rise to an order for release under Article 40.4 of the Irish Constitution, which allows for the immediate release of a person found to be detained otherwise in accordance with law

Accountability Structures and the Law Regulating Irish Prisons.

This publication seeks to raise awareness of prison law and prisoners’ rights jurisprudence amongst legal professionals, and to increase their research capacity in these areas. It is part of a series of three papers, one of which examines the law on aspects of prison conditions; the other explores practical matters surrounding the taking of prison law cases. The topic of this paper is ‘accountability structures and the law regulating Irish prisons’. It examines the aspects of the law regarding how decisions are made in prisons and the requirements for accountability for deaths and other serious incidents in custody

Dealing With Overcrowding in Prisons: Contrasting Judicial Approaches from the USA and Ireland.

Two recent decisions, one given by the Supreme Court of the United States of America and one of the Irish High Court, address the consequences of overcrowding in prisons. In Brown, Governor of California et at v. Plata et al1 (hereinafter Plata) the US Supreme Court upheld a decision of a three judge federal court requiring the State of California to reduce its prison population to 137.5% of the prison system’s design capacity, requiring the release of up to 46,000 prisoners. The Court agreed that the overcrowding in the Californian prison system had caused the breach of prisoners’ rights under the Eighth Amendment. In Kinsella v. Governor of Mountjoy Prison2 (hereinafter Kinsella), Hogan J held that a prisoner’s right to bodily integrity was also breached by the conditions of his detention, but stopped short of ordering his release under Article 40.4. This piece examines the decisions in Plata and Kinsella. Though the outcomes were different, the cases share some interesting similarities regarding the effects of overcrowding, with both courts required to deal with the difficulties occasioned by becoming involved in the administration of prisons. The points of difference between the judgments are also revealing. The remedies available to both courts are strikingly different as is the analysis of when prisoners’ rights have been breached

Prison Policy in Times of Austerity: Lessons from Ireland

The catastrophic collapse in the once booming Irish economy has led to swingeing budgets, huge falls in property prices, rising unemployment, cut backs in public services, and the ignominy of a bailout financed by the International Monetary Fund, the European Union and the European Central Bank. As has been the case for all aspects of public expenditure, prison policy-makers are now regularly using the language of efficiency and value for money when discussing plans for Ireland’s prisons. The state’s current economic woes are having some interesting effects on the direction of prison policy. Plans are afoot to reduce the prison population, after decades of growth, and despite the straitened financial circumstances, investment is forthcoming for the improvement of long-neglected prison conditions. Perhaps reflecting the public mood concerning the causes of recession, the sentencing of fraud offences is becoming more high profile, and, it appears, more harsh. This article examines the effect of the current recession on Irish prison policy. To do so, it explores the ways in which previous times of economic crisis played out in Irish prisons. It assesses the impact of the ‘Celtic Tiger’ years of economic growth on prison policy before examining how current austerity policies are affecting the numbers in prisons, prison conditions, and sentencing

The Rule of Law and Access to Justice in Prisons

At the heart of my talk is the concept of accountability, along with the importance of fairness and transparency in decisions taken in places which are very far from public view. The rule of law is ever more important in situations where the power relationship is tipped in the favour of the State, as in prisons. Speaking pragmatically, the fairness and legitimacy of decision-making in prisons is an important element in maintaining order and decent relationships between staff and prisoners, so essential in ensuring security. This practical reason for the application of the rule of law in prisons has been recognised by reports into disturbances in prison, such as the Woolf Report in to the Strangeways riots

Judicial Conceptions of Prisoners\u27 Rights in Ireland: an Emerging Field

This paper will discuss four themes. The first concerns judicial discussions of conditions of detention, secondly I will examine the development of the principles of procedural fairness in decisions on the use of separation or isolation of prisoners. I will then move to look at issues concerning foreign prisoners, and say a few words about conditions of detention in the immigration context. Finally, I will explore some of the barriers to a greater role for the Irish courts in the area of conditions of detention. I will speak from the experiences drawn from my research, but also from legal practice

Women in the Criminal Justice System in Irleand

This paper examines the use of imprisonment for women in Ireland

Taking Prison Law Cases; a Practical Approach.

This publication seeks to raise awareness of prison law and prisoners’ rights jurisprudence amongst legal professionals, and to increase their research capacity in these areas. It is part of a series of three papers, one of which examines accountability structures and the law regulating Irish prisons; the other explores the law on aspects of prison conditions. The topic of this paper is ‘taking prison law cases: a practical approach’. It seeks to address some practical aspects of taking prison law cases such as the causes of action available, matters relating to evidence, the possible role of interested agencies, and the effect of the release or transfer of a prisoner on a claim

Brown, Governor of California et al v. Plata et al.

The case of Brown, Governor of California et at v. Plata et al (hereinafter Plata) is one of the most eye-catching decisions of the Supreme Court of the United States in recent times. The result in itself – the upholding of an order of a Californian District Court to reduce the state’s prison population by up to 46,000 prisoners – would warrant attention. The reasoning of the Court and the differences between the majority and minority are also, however, most significant. The willingness of the Court to uphold the drastic measure of ordering a sizeable reduction in the Californian prison population (the first time such an order has been imposed) and the delicate navigation of the separation of powers thereby entailed makes Plata a decision of significance for the protection of prisoners’ rights and the interpretation of the controversial Prison Litigation Reform Act 1995 but also in the Court’s canon of constitutional law. While there is much that makes Plata a crucial decision in the history of prisoners’ litigation in the United States of America, it may not signal a radical shift in penal policy by itself

Improving Criminal Justice Data and Policy

Criminal justice policy in Ireland is often criticised for lacking a robust evidence base. Increased knowledge about crime and criminal justice may act to enrich all types of criminological enquiry and policy formation. This paper explores the potential of large population registries, similar to those created in the health sector, to inform criminal justice policymaking. The paper looks at the importance of such data collection for criminal justice research and policy and the potential hurdles to its development