Trapped: The IPP Prisoner Scandal
Appealing the Sentence: IH’s Story
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Episode notes
Today Sam is reporting on IH’s story. IH is one of the few prisoners who has successfully appealed against his draconian DPP sentence. DPP stands for ‘Detention for Public Protection’, it works just like IPPs, but it was given to people who were under the age of 18 at the time of their conviction. IH served a DPP sentence for 16 years. The Court of Appeal ruled he should have been given an extended sentence, not a DPP, so IH is now finally out of prison and free of this type of sentence.
It was the Conservative Peer Lord Moylan, who has long been an active campaigner to end IPP sentences, who put Sam onto IH’s story. Lord Moylan suggests to Sam that legal appeals by IPP prisoners is an alternative to resentencing, if political change is not forthcoming, however he acknowledges that getting nearly 3000 prisoners through the appeal courts is going to be a challenge.
IH was represented by Farrhat Arshad at Doughty Street Chambers. Sam meets Farrhat to talk about fighting and winning IH’s appeal, and the growing impediments that prison lawyers are facing in doing this kind of work. Whilst legal appeals may be a route to releasing individual prisoners, a UK Association prison lawyers report from August 2023 said that prison law legal aid work is ‘no longer sustainable’ due to the exhausting and poorly paid work undertaken by lawyers. So while this has been a successful case for her, Farrhat doesn't think we can get to zero IPP prisoners solely thorough legal appeals.
Meanwhile, following an initiative run by IPP campaigners to gain support for their cause from the UN, in September 2023 Dr Alice Edwards, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on Torture released a statement saying she had written to the UK government unequivocally condemning the IPP sentence, saying "for many, these sentences have become cruel, inhuman and degrading." The knock-on effect has seen mainstream news outlets like ITV, Sky and Channel 4 news report on what they are now calling 'torture sentences'. With rising awareness of this miscarriage of justice, pressure is growing on the government to take further action on IPPs.
Get in touch with the Trapped team on X, TikTok, Facebook or Instagram @Trapped_Pod
For more info about the campaign for IPP justice, visit: www.ungripp.com | @UNGRIPP
Contributors in order of appearance:
'IH', former DPP Prisoner
Lord Daniel Moylan, Conservative Peer @danielmoylan.com
Farrhat Arshad, Barrister, Doughty Street Chambers | @DoughtyStCrime | https://www.doughtystreet.co.uk/barristers/farrhat-arshad
Production Team:
Reporter: Samantha Asumadu @SamanthaAsumadu
Executive Producer: Melissa FitzGerald @melissafitzg
Producer: Steve Langridge @SMLANGERS
Consultant: Hank Rossi
Artwork: The Brightside
A Zinc Media production for the Institute of Now
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