McDowell: Gangland killers must spend 15 years minimum in jail
Gangland killers and terrorists should serve at least 15 years in jail, Minister for Justice Michael McDowell insisted today.
As the parole board revealed and examined cases of 109 prisoners last year, the minister said he wanted to dispel the urban myth that murderers could expect to be released after just seven years behind bars.
Mr McDowell said: “Sometimes the timeframe for the first review of a life sentence of a prisoner by the Parole Board after a seven-year period of detention has led, wrongly, to an assumption that life sentence prisoners are then released.
“This is entirely without foundation.”
In its annual report for 2005, the parole board, headed by Dr Gordon Holmes, detailed that the body dealt with almost twice as many cases than the previous year.
Some 66 inmates participated in reviews, including 16 murderers and nine sex offenders.
In all 46 recommendations were made to the minister and one prisoner was released by order of the courts during review.
Mr McDowell said he had continually sought to dispel the notion that life sentences generally meant only seven years in jail.
He claimed on average life was more likely to mean 12 to 14 years behind bars.
“I want to send that message out loud and clear. Respect for human life must be a cornerstone of our society,” the minister said.
“When a person commits a murder often in a cold-blooded fashion, then he or she must be in no doubt of the consequences, he or she will serve a long prison sentence following conviction for such a heinous and despicable crime.”
Mr McDowell said criminals involved in gun attacks, paramilitarism or gangland murders should serve between 15 and 20 years in jail.
He also insisted convicts jailed for life and subsequently released over the last 10 years served on average 13-and-a-half years.
