NCJ Number
90714
Journal
Rassegna penitenziaria e criminologica Volume: 4 Issue: 1-2 Dated: (January - June 1982) Pages: 91-121
Date Published
1982
Length
31 pages
Annotation
The prison reform granting reductions of prison sentences requires further jurisprudential interpretation.
Abstract
The reduction of prison terms, which Article 54 of the prison regulations defines as early release, allows prisoners who are being rehabilitated successfully to deduct 20 days for every 6 months of their sentence. Seven years after the implementation of this reform, a very wide gap still exists between interpretation of merit and interpretation of legitimacy. The Court of Cassation has recommended that days should be deducted based on the total sentence, rather than on 6-month subdivisions. It also proposes that the reduction of sentence be granted only if real behavioral change is observed, and that the amount of the reduction be linked to the extent of altered behavior. Both cases in the literature and views of various supervisory magistrates support the principle of early release from prison as a proper and legitimate incentive and reward for good conduct. It is argued that for the purpose of assessing the requirements for early release, individual 6-month periods (or longer periods if needed in certain cases) should be considered separately.