TUESDAY, 3.30PM
A NEW draft Bill providing for a tougher parole system was tabled in Parliament on Tuesday.
Among the provisions of the Bill include allowing courts to fix a non-parole period of a convict’s sentence, and revamped parole boards with greater community representation.
The Bill proposes that where a court has set a non-parole period, a prisoner should not be considered for parole unless he has served that period, or half of his term of imprisonment, whichever is longer. If no period has been set, a prisoner will have to serve at least half his sentence. However, no prisoner will serve more than 20 years before being considered for parole.
The existing power of the commissioner of correctional services to grant a two-year remission of sentence to prisoners who have rendered “highly meritorious service” is retained in the Bill, with the additional proviso that this remission may not be deducted from the non-parole period.
The Bill also says at least two of the eight members of a parole board must be drawn from the community but, according to the department, the chair and vice-chair will also come from the community. The remaining board members will be one official of the SA Police Service, one from the Justice Department, and two from Correctional Services. While existing boards, which are dominated by correctional services officials, are only able to advise the minister and commissioner on parole, the new boards will take decisions themselves.