International Visits of the Scottish Prisons Commission
Visit to Ireland
The Commission had a successful visit to Ireland on the 1st and 2nd of April 2008. Members of the Commission had informative discussions with a number of officials on -
- criminal justice policy
- the Irish Prison Service
- the role and functions of the Probation Service in the management of offenders, including community disposals, and
- the Irish Youth Justice Service.
The members also had the opportunity to meet Judge Michael Reilly, Inspector of Prisons, and Judge Mary Martin, Chair of the National Commission on Restorative Justice.
Visit to New York
The Commission had a successful visit to New York on the 20th to the 23rd of April 2008. The Commission members visited three projects -
- Midtown Community Court which targets quality of life offences such as prostitution, illegal vending, graffiti, shoplifting, and vandalism. It sentences low level offenders to pay back the neighbourhood through communtiy service, while also offering them help with problems that often underlie criminal behaviour.
- Red Hook Community Justice Center which seeks to solve neighbourhood problems like drugs, crime and domestic violence. The judge has an array of sanctions and services at his disposal, including community restitution projects, educational workshops, drug treatment and mental health counselling.
- Bronx Community Solutions which applies a problem solving approach to non-violent cases. It provides judges with increased sentencing options for drug possession, prostitution, and shoplifting.
During the visit the members were able to have informative discussions with Project Directors, Judges, the New York Police Department, and Prosecutors.
Visit to Finland
The Commission also visited Finland on the 5th to the 7th of May 2008. The Commission spoke to the Ministry of Justice, the Director of the National Institute of Legal Policy, Professor Tapio Lappi-Seppälä, the Probation and Prison services, and the Inspector General of Police.
We were shown the following presentations -