The conflicting trends have emerged in statistics provided by the Irish Prison Service to the Irish Examiner following queries. This has meant the total number of committals to prisons has more than halved, from 17,206 in 2015 to 8,079 in 2018. Committals for fine defaulting had jumped from 2,250 in 2008, to 7,514 in 2011, reaching a peak of 9,883 in 2015. “Numbers in prison custody averaged 4,026 last week, with up to six closed prisons meeting or exceeding safe custody limits established by the Inspector of Prisons,” she said. Eoin Carroll, of the Jesuit Centre for Faith and Justice, welcomed the “positive impact” of the fines legislation, including on overall committals to prisons.

Source: Irish Examiner April 02, 2019 03:56 UTC