More women will die if domestic abusers leave prison early, victim’s parents warn
Summary
The parents of a woman killed by her partner soon after he was released from prison have warned that allowing domestic abusers early release could lead to more deaths. The government plans to release 5,000 prisoners early to reduce overcrowding, but experts and victim support groups say this could put survivors at risk because of poor supervision and lack of rehabilitation.Key Facts
- Michaela Hall was murdered in 2021 by Lee Kendall two weeks after he was freed from prison.
- Kendall had been serving time for assaulting Hall and was wrongly assessed as medium risk by the Probation Service.
- The Probation Service struggles due to heavy workloads and made an error in assessing Kendall’s risk level.
- The government will release 5,000 prisoners early from October to ease overcrowded prisons in England and Wales.
- Prisoners convicted of serious sexual offenses will not be released early, but domestic abusers are included.
- Probation officers have voted for possible strikes over excessive workloads and concerns about managing released offenders.
- Women’s Aid and victim advocates warn early release without proper rehabilitation could lead to more violence and deaths.
- The Hall family is suing the Probation Service and police over their handling of the case, citing errors and victim blaming.
Read the Full Article
This is a fact-based summary from The Actual News. Click below to read the complete story directly from the original source.
