Lack of assessment may lead to inmates' release

The prospect of dangerous prisoners being released was raised yesterday by a High Court Judge who ruled that an inmate should be freed because of lack of facilities to assess whether he remained a threat to the public.

Mr Justice Collins said that government "failings" over the introduction of its indeterminate sentence for public protection (IPP) in 2005, meant that prisoners were being kept in jails that lack the resources to review their minimum sentences.

In a test case he ordered that the continued imprisonment of Bret James, an inmate at Doncaster prison serving an IPP, was unlawful. James had served his minimum period of one year and 295 days and now Doncaster prison had no facilities to take a course which could show whether or not he was still a threat to the public.

Mr Justice Collins said: "Because of the failings of the Government, a fairly large number of IPP prisoners are likely to be released if the Court of Appeal finds the detention is unlawful. This is very worrying.

"The consequences are truly disastrous because it is inevitable that short-term lifers will have to be released whether or not they remain a risk to the public."

Earlier this month, the High Court ruled that the Secretary of State for Justice, Jack Straw, had acted unlawfully in failing to provide the necessary resources. Ministers then said that they were investing £3m over the next 18 months in resources for the tests in prisons.

Now James's release has been postponed until his case is heard with the previous one - involving David Walker and Nicholas Wells - in the same appeals court.

However, Mr Justice Collins ruled that if the ruling was upheld by the court it was "inevitable" a raft of prisoners would follow James, 21, who was given the sentence after being convicted of causing grevious bodily harm by smashing a beer glass on a man outside a pub in Normanton, South Yorkshire.

Now that he has served his minimum sentence, it has emerged that Doncaster prison does not have the courses which would present the possibility of him demonstrating he was no longer a threat. The courses include measures to encourage "advanced thinking", and those addressing alcohol abuse and violent tempers. More than 3,000 offenders have received IPPs in the past two years.

A number of inmates whose releases have been deferred are said to be preparing claims for damages over the delays to their parole hearings. The Ministry of Justice said the decision was "a disappointment" but said it would appeal.

Nick Herbert, the Tory spokesman, said: "Letting out serious offenders even though they could remain a risk to the public would be totally unacceptable."

James's solicitor, Erica Restall, said last night: "In my view it is not right that he faces the prospect of detention indefinitely for something he has already paid the penalty for."

The latest development adds to the sense of crisis surrounding Britain's prisons at a time when the Prisons Service has been told to cut its budget next year.