A review of Scotland’s prisons is recommending jail sentences of less than a year should be banned and judges should be discouraged from issuing short terms of less than 24 months.
The findings of an independent commission warns Scotland must rethink its “unsustainable and ineffective” criminal justice system.
The shift towards more community alternatives also calls for long term prisoners to be freed automatically after two thirds of their sentence under increased supervision.
Some have welcomed this approach as a potential springboard for change while critics claim it is reckless.
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