A mother whose son has spent 14 years in prison for a phone theft has appealed to Andy Burnham to release him and other IPP prisoners instead of killers under the early release scheme.
Shaun Lloyd, 38, was jailed for two years and nine months in 2006 but has served more than three times that because he received an imprisonment for public protection (IPP) sentence. He was recalled to HMP Cardiff weeks ago after an anonymous phone call, despite committing no further offence.
More than 2,000 people are still serving open-ended IPP punishments, many for relatively minor crimes such as phone theft.
Mother's plea
Shaun's mum, Shirley Debono, 66, told Metro: 'They have stolen Shaun's life away from him. The country is in uproar over the prisoners that have been released early. Forget about them, start by releasing these IPP prisoners instead.'
IPP sentences, which allowed judges to impose sentences with no maximum tariff, were scrapped in 2012 but not retrospectively. The United Nations ruled last week that keeping IPP prisoners in jail was 'inhumane' and a form of psychological torture.
Shaun's case
In November 2005, aged 18, Shaun pushed someone to the floor and took their mobile in Cardiff. When chased, he stopped and returned the phone. The victim called police, and he was sentenced for robbery in 2006. His co-defendant served less than a year, but Shaun first left prison in 2014.
He has been recalled five times since, initially due to a drug addiction he developed in jail, serving months or years behind bars. He had been out for only four and a half months when he was recalled again after an anonymous phone call, which the family says was malicious.
Shirley said: 'He had turned his life down. He was drug free, he had gotten into the gym and was getting fit. He had applied for an apprenticeship with the railways and got it. And then an anonymous phone call comes in. They stile his life away from him just as he was rebuilding it.'
No chance to put it right
Shirley was shocked when officers visited her home after a caller alleged Shaun had strangled her, which she denies. Despite not being arrested, questioned, or charged, Shaun was recalled indefinitely for failing to report the police visit to his probation officer immediately.
'You haven't even got a chance to put it right. You have to go back to prison as if you are a guilty person,' Shirley added.
The Criminal Cases Review Commission (CCRC) is due to decide in August whether to send Shaun's case to the Court of Appeal. Shirley, who founded the IPP Committee In Action, said there are hundreds of IPP prisoners in similar positions. As many as 96 people have taken their own lives in custody after losing hope of release.
Government response
On Monday, the Prime Minister asked for a review of IPP sentences after announcing he would continue the early release scheme. Rapists, child sexual abusers, and groomers will be excluded, but domestic abusers and killers could still be released early, including the two men jailed for killing PC Andrew Harper in 2020.
Shirley said: 'Andy Burnham has to go back and include IPP prisoners in the early release scheme. They have been in prison for 15 to 20 years and have committed far less heinous crimes than the people he is releasing on this scheme. The country is in uproar over the prisoners that have been released. I'm pleading with the government to release all those that were found not guilty in court, face no further action or have had charges dropped. This runs into hundreds and hundreds of IPP prisoners.'
She also believes some mentally ill IPP prisoners should be moved to hospital settings. She added that the Prime Minister and Secretary of State for Justice risk having 'blood on their hands' if they don't act.
The United Nations condemned the open-ended detention in a scathing 16-page document last week. The Human Rights Council's Working Group on Arbitrary Detention said it constituted 'inhumane treatment' due to the 'mental anguish of being subjected to continuous uncertainty of a release date'. The committee examined five men, including Shaun, who have served a combined 87 years behind bars. The UN argued all five are entitled to compensation.
Reacting to the UN judgement, Shirley said: 'It's inhumane. It's unlawful. We've known it for years and years. We have now got some mighty organisation on our side and agreeing with us.' She believes Shaun and his two children, aged eight and 10, should receive compensation.
A Government spokesperson said: 'It is right that these sentences were abolished, and as the IPP annual report shows, support has significantly improved for these offenders, with greater access to rehabilitation and mental health support. We are now looking at what more can be done.'
