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44 How. J. Crim. Just. 1 (2005)

handle is hein.journals/hjcj44 and id is 1 raw text is: The Howard journal Vol 44 No 1. February 2005 ISSN 0265-552 7, pp. 1-11 Why the Failure of the Prison Service and the Parole Board to Acknowledge Wrongful Imprisonment is Untenable MICHAEL NAUGHTON Lecturer School of Law and Department of Sociology, University of Bristol Abstract: This article analyses key documents that were produced in collaboration between the Prison Service and the Prison Reform Trust. It identifies an organisational inability on the part of the Prison Service and the Parole Board to acknowledge that the courts can return incorrect verdicts and that wrongful imprisonment can, and does occur It argues that this renders the ways in which the Prison Service and the Parole Board deal with life prisoners who maintain that they are innocent of the crimes for which they were convicted untenable. To demonstrate this, the article distinguishes two broad categories of wrongful imprisonment. It concludes that those charged with a duty of care for and the possible release of those given custodial sentences by the courts must, therefore, be prepared to 'think the unthinkable' and make adequate provision for the innocent victims of wrongful imprisonment that are sure to come their way. Two key sources of information given to life prisoners about the structure of their sentences and the procedures through which they might possibly achieve release from prison are the Prisoners Information Booklets Life Sentenced Prisoners 'Lifers' (Prison Reform Trust and HM Prison Service 1998) (to be referred to as Lifers in subsequent references in this article) and Parole Information Booklet (Prison Reform Trust and HM Prison Service 2002). 'Possible release' because there is no certainty that a life prisoner will be released if they do not satisfy the release procedures (Prison Reform Trust and HM Prison Service 1998, p.2). The format of the booklets is a deliberate 'user-friendly' attempt to inform prisoners through a 'fre- quently asked questions and answers' guide written from a prisoners' 'voice' that is answered from the institutional 'voice' of the Prison Service and Parole Board. 'Lifers' Perhaps, the two most important questions and answers contained in Lifers to this discussion are as follows. Firstly, the prisoner asks: What do I have to do to prepare for release? (Prison Reform Trust and HM Prison Service 1998, p.8) 1 0 Blackwell Publishing Ltd. 2005, 9600 Garsington Road, Oxford OX4 2DQ UK and 350 Main Street Malden MA 0214R USA

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