By Calvin Palmer
Prisoners on the run from a British prison cannot be identified because it would violate their rights to privacy, the Ministry of Justice has said
Civil servants say releasing their names would breach obligations under the Data Protection Act.
It echoes a row in 2007 when Derbyshire Police refused to release pictures of two escaped murderers.
The policy emerged in response to Freedom Of Information requests to name inmates on the run from H.M. Prison Hollesley Bay near Woodbridge, Suffolk.
The open prison, which has sea views, is known as Holiday Bay because of its easy-going regime.
The Ministry of Justice confirmed 39 prisoners had absconded from the prison between January 1, 2007, and March 31, 2009. The crimes they were sentenced for included 16 that involved violence
The offenders included nine robbers, two serving sentences for attempted robbery, one for wounding and four others for grievous bodily harm.
But the ministry refused to say how many had been recaptured, saying their identities had to be protected from third parties.
MP John Gummer has promised to raise the matter in parliament with Jack Straw, the Justice Secretary.
He said: “It’s intolerable and entirely unacceptable. There is no sense in which a prisoner’s identity is a private matter. In my view, he sacrifices that when he becomes a prisoner.”
A Ministry of Justice spokesman said: “Whilst it is in the public interest to be aware of offenders who have escaped from custody as they may help in identifying the absconders thereby enabling the police to detain them; it is not in the public interest to prejudice any enquiries or operations the police may be conducting into apprehending the absconder.
“It is the general policy of the Ministry of Justice not to disclose, to a third party, personal information about another person.
“This is because the Ministry of Justice has obligations under the Data Protection Act and in law generally to protect this information.”
In January 2007 Derbyshire Police refused to release pictures of two convicted murderers on the run from jail.
Derbyshire’s Chief Constable David Coleman said Jason Croft and Michael Nixon posed “no risk” and the force had to consider the Human Rights Act and data protection laws when asked to publish photographs. The force later denied human rights had been a factor.
[Based on a report by The Daily Telegraph.]
3 Comments
July 4, 2009 at 1:34 pm
I tell you………the world has gone mad.Where is the rational thinking?
Imagine these fellows having “rights” of this manner.
The ACLU is one of my favorite idiot groups as well.The idea of protecting John Q. ’s civil liberties was the conceptual plan. But then things get grabbed up by some nut who has figured out how to USE it for squirming out of his /her bad deeds.
And who decides who the “no risk” people are?
There ya go…………
July 6, 2009 at 8:46 pm
Zelda, I love the ACLU. Our legal system is adversarial. It was set up that way so I am glad someone steps up to protect our rights from that direction. As it is, it is such an uneven playing field. We need all the help we can get.
July 6, 2009 at 9:42 pm
Who do you mean by “we”?
The sane or the insane?
John Q. or off the edge, beyond the fringe, groups?
Should the ACLU protect the rights of “men who want sex with boys” group?They came out a few years ago defending them you know.That is when the fat hit the fire for me.The ACLU idea went way off track.
I wish I had a reference for you on that. I will try to find some info and get it on here .