THE ANNUAL REPORT OF THE CRIMINAL SANCTIONS FIELD 2007

Transcription

1 THE ANNUAL REPORT OF THE CRIMINAL SANCTIONS FIELD 2007

2 THE ANNUAL REPORT OF THE CRIMINAL SANCTIONS FIELD 2007 Organisation...1 Management review...2 PENALTIES...4 Penalties according to the offence...5 Sentence term is planned from the beginning to the end...6 DEVELOPMENT AND CO-OPERATION...8 Towards the development programme of the criminal sanctions field...9 Productivity programme...9 Co-operation Active international co-operation...10 PRISON SERVICE...11 Turku Prison moved from Kakolanmäki to Saramäki...12 Order and security...13 Less escapes yet more unauthorised leaves...13 Intensified prison order...13 High-security wards were introduced...14 Activities...14 Studying...15 Rehabilitating programmes...15 Prison Health Care Services stabilised its activities...16 COMMUNITY SANCTIONS...17 Individual programme called Five Discussions on Change was introduced...18 More community sanctions than in the previous year...19 Supervision of parolees...19 Juvenile punishment...19 Community service...19 Background of community sanction clients...20 PERSONNEL AND FINANCES...21 Personnel...22 Personnel structure...22 Occupational wellbeing...22 Coping at work and professional competence need encouragement...23 Finances...23 Income and expenses account...24 Duties and goals of the criminal sanctions field Ministry of Justice Criminal Policy Department The Prison Service and the Probation Service are part of the criminal sanctions system of Finland. Their common goals are to contribute to the security in society by maintaining a lawful and. safe system of enforcement of sentences; and Prison Personnel Training Centre to assist in reducing recidivism and preventing the development of. social exclusion which maintains criminality. Criminal Sanctions Agency The Prison Service enforces the prison sentences and the conversion sentences for unpaid fines imposed by the courts of law and takes care of the enforcement of remand imprisonment. Probation Service District Offices Prison Service District Prisons Health Care Services The Probation Service is in charge of the enforcement of community sanctions and other activities related to sanctions served in freedom. The Criminal Sanctions Agency is a central administrative agency of the criminal sanctions field responsible for the direction and administration of the enforcement of community sanctions and prison sentences.

3 Organisation Rovaniemi Kemi Kuusamo Oulu Kajaani Kokkola Iisalmi Nurmes Vaasa Kuopio Seinäjoki Varkaus Joensuu Jyväskylä Savonlinna Mikkeli Tampere Pori Lappeenranta Hämeenlinna Lahti Riihimäki Kouvola Turku Vantaa Kotka Espoo Porvoo Helsinki District Prison of Southern Finland 1 Helsinki Prison 2 Helsinki Open Prison * 3 Hämeenlinna Prison 4 Jokela Prison 5 Kerava Prison 6 Riihimäki Prison 7 Vanaja Prison * (Vanaja, Ojoinen) 8 Vantaa Prison District Prison of Western Finland 9 Kylmäkoski Prison 10 Käyrä Prison * 11 Satakunta Prison * (Huittinen, Köyliö) 12 Turku Prison 13 Vaasa Prison 14 Vilppula Prison * District Prison of Southeastern Finland 15 Konnunsuo Prison (Konnunsuo, Hamina*) 16 Mikkeli Prison 17 Naarajärvi Prison * 18 Sulkava Prison * District Prison of Eastern Finland 19 Juuka Prison * 20 Kuopio Prison 21 Laukaa Prison * 22 Pyhäselkä Prison 23 Sukeva Prison District Prison of Northern Finland 24 Oulu Prison 25 Pelso Prison (Pelso, Kestilä*) 26 Ylitornio Prison * * Open institutions Director General Criminal Sanctions Agency Offices of the Probation Service Espoo District Office Helsinki District Office Porvoo Local Office Hämeenlinna District Office Riihimäki Local Office Joensuu District Office Nurmes Operational Bureau Jyväskylä District Office Kuopio District Office Iisalmi Local Office District Office of Southeastern Finland Kotka Office Kouvola Office Lappeenranta Office Lahti District Office Mikkeli District Office Savonlinna Local Office Varkaus Local Office District Office of Ostrobotnia Seinäjoki Office Vaasa Office Kokkola Office District Office of Northern Finland Kajaani Office Kuusamo Operational Bureau Sopentupa Camp Kemi Office Oulu Office Rovaniemi Office Pori District Office Tampere District Office Turku District Office Ahvenanmaa Operational Bureau Vantaa District Office District Prison of Southern Finland Assessment and Allocation Unit Prisons District Prison of Western Finland Assessment and Allocation Unit Prisons District Prison of Southeastern Finland Assessment and Allocation Unit Prisons District Prison of Eastern Finland Assessment and Allocation Unit Prisons District Prison of Northern Finland Assessment and Allocation Unit Prisons Health Care Services District Units Prison Hospital Prison Mental Hospital Medicine Dispensary

4 Management review District prisons started operation in the Prison Service The new operational units of the Prison Service, i.e., five district prisons and the national health care unit called the Prison Health Care Services started operation on 1 October The main focus of the first full year of operation was to launch the activities and recruit people to the district prisons and their assessment and allocation units. The successful development of the activities was advanced and will probably continue to be advanced by the decreasing prison population rate, which eased the overcrowding situation and the resultant harms in closed prisons. Instead, the lack of personnel, for instance, in the assessment and allocation units has hindered the development of the imprisonment process. Turku Prison moved to new premises The building of the new Turku Prison was the most extensive project in the history of the present-day prison administration in Finland. The earth-moving work was started at the location in Saramäki in 2003 and the prison was completed in August A history of over a hundred years of prison life in the old location in Kakolanmäki was left behind when the most modern high security prison in the whole country was opened in September. Besides the prison and the Assessment and Allocation Unit of the District Prison of Western Finland, also the Prison Mental Hospital with 40 beds is located in the new premises in Saramäki. The new prison has in total 348 places for prisoners and employs about 280 people. Decrease in the number of young community sanction clients The daily number of community sanction clients increased by about 200 compared with the previous year. As regards to parolees, the significant increase was caused by the new amendments to the legislation on the conditional release, i.e. parole, and the placement under supervision, which entered into force in the autumn The estimated utilisation rates of the juvenile punishment presented in the preparation phase have turned out to be oversized for the use of the punishment has been considerably low. The number of conditionally sentenced young offenders has also been dropping steadily for many years due to both the shrunken age group sizes and the higher obedience to the law among young people. The share of those who successfully completed a community service sentence stayed at the same level as in the previous years. The performance targets connected with the planning of the process were achieved well; sentence plans were prepared for 83% of the community sanction clients. Operational efficiency fell slightly short of its targets Director General ESA VESTERBACKA, Prison Service of Finland The morbidity of the personnel has decreased and there has been a positive development regarding the problems related to the personnel overtime work in the institutions. It is fair to say that the increased number of personnel sick leaves correlates distinctly with the higher prison population rate. As the prison population rate began to decrease, also the amount of sick leaves was stabilised and started to drop during The average prison population was which was 227 lower than in the previous year. Balancing the variation of the overcrowding situation in closed prisons has not succeeded in accordance with the set target in all district prisons. The target was that the occupancy rates of closed prisons would differ only by a maximum of 10% from each other. The aim was also to ease the overcrowding in closed prisons by raising the occupancy rates of open prisons. The aimed occupancy rate was set to 98% but the actual rate was on average only about 81%. At the same time, the average occupancy rate of closed prisons was 105%. In 2007, the Probation Service enforced community sanctions or prepared expert statements of about clients with under 300 person-years. A project to develop the support processes of community sanctions was launched in The aim of the project is to increase the working hours allocated to the basic function.

5 Intensified quality control of the release phase The focus of the quality control and the effectiveness of the prison services is on the assessment of the function of the different imprisonment process elements. In order to enhance the release phase, the district prisons redefined the division of work between the institutions. The preparation of the release plans multiplied especially in the late Approximately every third prisoner received a release plan or a partial release plan. The district prisons and the district probation offices have developed together operational models on common practices in order to ensure the continuums in the release phase. The operational models of three district prisons were confirmed in In community sanction work, particular attention is paid to evaluating substance abuse problems and to increasing the use of substance programmes associated with community service. The application of these programmes also to other community sanctions is being prepared. The new suitability assessment handbook and the quality assessment model were used as tools to develop the statement preparation work. In Turku Prison the outdoor walking areas set deeper in the ground separate different prisoner groups from each other. Once again on the threshold of a new change The Ministry of Justice initiated a development project concerning the prison services and, in June 2007, commissioned to develop the organisation of the criminal sanctions field. In the preparation phase, the Criminal Sanctions Agency decided to unite these assignments into one project, i.e. a project to develop the whole criminal sanctions field. The development project was launched in November The purpose of the project is to prepare and partly also implement measures which enable more efficient use of the resources of the criminal sanctions field. Open kitchen area in a cell ward in Turku Prison. The project is divided into two sections: the first section consists of guidance and leadership and the second consists of productivity and service. The aim is to form a steady foundation for an efficient sentence enforcement organisation providing services. The main goal is to create a joint organisation of the criminal sanctions field. Along with the project, preparations are also made to unite the administrations of the Prison Service and the Probation Service by the beginning of Bookbinding facilities in Turku Prison. Esa Vesterbacka, Director General

6 Penalties

7 Penalties according to the offence Offenders sentenced to imprisonment have to start serving the sentence directly after the judgment has become final. Community service and juvenile punishment have to be enforced immediately after the sentence becomes enforceable. In 2007, a total of sentences were entered in a sentence register kept by the Criminal Sanctions Agency. The number also includes those sentences passed by the courts of first instance that are not yet final. The sentences entered in the sentence register consisted of prison sentences, community service sentences, and 28 juvenile punishment sentences. In addition, the Criminal Sanctions Agency keeps a register of conditionally sentenced young offenders ordered to supervision in which sentences were entered. The Criminal Sanctions Agency received in total 691 postponement applications in The enforcement of a sentence was postponed for health reasons in 428 cases. Enforcement transfers In 2007, a total of 109 enforcement requests were received from the other Nordic countries. Of those requests, 98 concerned enforcing a sentence and 11 arranging the supervision in Finland. Altogether 56 cases related to transferring the enforcement or supervision of a sentence passed in Finland to another Nordic country were brought up. Eight of them concerned arranging supervision. Release The general penalties sentenced for offences are petty fine, fine, conditional or unconditional imprisonment, community service, and juvenile punishment. In 2007, all in all 945 remand prisoners, fine default prisoners and sentenced prisoners were released from prison, and of them were released on parole. Prison directors decide on the prisoners release on parole. In 2007, 25%, i.e of those released on parole, were ordered to supervision. Prisoners are placed under supervision if the probation period is longer than 12 months or the offence was committed when under 21 years of age. Prisoners may also request supervision themselves. If parolees are found guilty of new offences during the probationary period, the court decides whether they lose their parole. Judicial supervision In 2007, prisoners filed 353 new complaints whereas 401 complaints were replied. A total of 112 complaints concerned the health care services. Approximately 15% of the complaints lead to action. The Parliamentary Ombudsman submitted 67 requests for a statement or a report. Since 1 October 2006, prisoners have been able to make a claim for rectification to the district prison director against certain decisions which concern the sentenced person or the prisoner and which are listed in the Act on Imprisonment and in the Act on Remand Imprisonment. In 2007, 350 claims for rectification were made nationwide and 21 of them lead to some sort of change. The claims for rectification typically concerned the postponement of enforcement for other than health-related reasons and the disciplinary punishments. Prisoners may appeal to the Administrative Court when they have not received a desired change through a claim for rectification. In 2007, a total of 93 appeals were lodged. Based on the appeal, the Administrative Court changed the eight decisions of the district prisons. The new appeal methods (claim for rectification and appeal to the Administrative Court) have had only a little influence on the number of complaints lodged by prisoners to the Criminal Sanctions Agency. The annual number of complaints has decreased by nearly ten per cent. One of the reasons may be that, for the time being, claims for rectification may only be lodged against some of the decisions made based on the Act on Imprisonment and the Act on Remand Imprisonment. Typical decisions not subject to claim for rectification but cause a large number of complaints are negative decisions on prison leaves applied based on the length of the sentence. Parolees may be ordered to supervision carried out by the Probation Service for the length of the probationary period. The probationary period is the remaining term of the sentence (socalled remaining sentence), which is at least three months but no more than three years long.

8 Sentence term is planned from the beginning to the end The enforcement of imprisonment is seen as a three-phase planned process, which consists of the arrival in prison, the sentence term, and the release. Most sentenced prisoners (94%) who arrived in prison in 2007 were drawn a sentence plan in the assessment and allocation unit. In total, sentence plans were made. Prisoners, whose life control skills, reintegration into the society, or risks of recidivism call for the specific planning of activities in order to gain abilities to live without crime, are summoned to come to the assessment and allocation unit. A risk and needs assessment is drawn up of each prisoner and it forms the basis for the sentence plans. Most sentence plans were drawn based on written documents. The sentence plans of every third prisoner with an over six-month sentence were based on a risk and needs assessment. The most common goals set in the plans and aimed to be influenced during the sentence term were connected with improving employment or acquiring education in general, intervening in substance abuse problems, and developing thinking skills. Security issues are also taken into account when selecting the prison where the prisoner is going to be allocated. The enforcement of community sanctions always starts begins by reviewing the situation of the community sanction client. Based on that, a plan for the sentence term is drawn together with the client. The plan includes as realistic and concrete goals as possible, which promote coping with everyday life and living without crime. In 2007, all in all plans were made. When the enforcement of a community sanction ends, the realisation of the plan is evaluated together with the client. Activities corresponding the plans New working practices were introduced in prisons in order to ensure the realisation of the sentence plans. A new personnel group, i.e. senior prison officers, are responsible for co-ordinating the work and monitoring the implementation of the plans. In many institutions, their work also includes other duties mainly connected with security issues. Based on the information on the needs of prisoners, the development of the prison activities was initiated so that the correspondence between the activities and the sentence plans would improve but the work will take a long time. In good time prior to the release, an assessment of the prisoner s need for services is made and a release plan, which is part of the sentence plan, is drawn in co-operation with various interest groups. The preparation of the release plans became more common in prisons in particular in the autumn Over one third of the released prisoners received a release plan or a partial release plan. Open institutions, which function as release units, prepared the release plans almost always. The plans of young offenders, prisoners who have been in substance rehabilitation, and prisoners who are going to be placed in probationary freedom were made in co-operation with a service network. The Probation Service prepares a supervision plan continuing the target-oriented work in accordance with the sentence plan to those released prisoners who are placed under supervision. Continuums to freedom The Probation Service and the Prison Service made regional co-operation agreements, which aim to ensure the continuums from prison to freedom. Agreements on the co-operation in the release phase were also reached with the social services of some towns and, because if this, the prisons employed social workers. The Probation Association also provides social Planned sentence term Planned prison term Planned supervision period Sentence plan Release plan Supervision plan Probation Service Prison Service Co-operation

9 services in two prisons. The State Provincial Offices organised education for municipal social workers and other co-operation partners in reference to introducing a co-operation model of the aftercare of released prisoners presented by a committee of the Ministry of Social Affairs and Health, the Ministry of Justice, and the Association of Finnish Local and Regional Authorities. The Criminal Sanctions Agency, the Diaconia University of Applied Sciences, and the Training Institute of Prison and Probation Services joined to arrange a seminar on the issues related to the release phase. Approximately 270 representatives of different co-operation partners participated in the seminar. Supervised probationary freedom functions well On certain conditions, prisoners may be placed in supervised probationary freedom outside the prison a maximum of six months before their release on parole. The obligatory probationary freedom of prisoners serving the whole sentence starts three months before their release. The aim of the probationary freedom is to promote prisoners reintegration into the society in the final stage of their time in an institution. Prisoners are expected to comply with the abstinence from substances and other conditions of the probationary freedom. The release plan required in probationary freedom includes, among other things, the housing situation and livelihood, the obligation to participate in an activity, the daily schedule, and the supervision of the probationary freedom. The probationary freedom is supervised by prisons. The supervision is carried out with the help of technical equipment, telephone calls, and locating systems. In addition, prisoners placed in probationary freedom may be visited at home and at the place they are participating in an activity, or they can be ordered to report to prison. The movement of the supervised persons can also be restricted to a certain area and to certain hours. Prisoners placed in supervised probationary freedom receive the same social security benefits and social services as those who are serving community sanctions. The use of supervised probationary freedom increased in the course of the year. In 2007, 103 prisoners started probationary freedom. The experiences of probationary freedom have mainly been positive but both the preparation of probationary freedom and the realisation of the supervision demand more work than what was assumed. The probationary freedoms of only five prisoners were reversed. Technology as part of the development of the sanction system A working group appointed by the Ministry of Justice suggested in its report published in December (OM 2007:17) that the use of electronic monitoring should be expanded in the sanction system. A new type of supervision sentence reminding of home detention could enable that short prison sentences could be served at home or in institutional care under electronic supervision. The movements of the sentenced persons would be monitored, e.g., with the help of a mobile phone, a tag attached to the ankle and connected to a monitoring device, or a combination of those two. The new supervision sentence would be possible if there was some obstacle to sentencing to community service. It would be a more severe punishment than community service because the sentenced persons would be under constant supervision. The minimum sentence would be 14 days and maximum four months. The sentenced persons would be ordered to stay in an approved place and obligated to participate in an activity from 10 to 40 hours per week. Thus, they could leave their homes only to go to work, studies, meetings, or other activities promoting their functioning abilities. Abstinence from substances would be monitored with the help of urine, saliva and breathalyser tests as well as control visits without prior notice. Breaches of the abstinence from substances would immediately lead to converting the sentence into imprisonment. The working group also suggested that technical measures should be used in supervising all travel bans. Hence, suspects could be more commonly banned from travelling rather than arrested or imprisoned. Especially in the case of persons under the age of 18 years, this option should be considered instead of the loss of freedom. Policies of programme work completed A working group appointed to review the programme work policies of the criminal sanctions field completed its work at the end of the year. The official document on the policies of programme work determined, among other things, programme as a concept as well as current programme activity in the criminal sanctions filed. In addition, the document presents policies on what programme activity should be like in the criminal sanctions filed.

10 Development and Co-operation

11 Towards the development programme of the criminal sanctions field Rapporteur presented his report in January In September 2006, the Minister of Justice appointed Director General of the State Treasury Jukka Wuolijoki as a rapporteur. His task was to assess the state of the finances and administration as well as the instruction and supervision in the prison services, and to give necessary development suggestions by the end of the year. The goal was to establish a several years long development programme, which could be implemented in broad consensus and used to ensure adequate administrative and operative preconditions for the overall reform of the prison services. The rapporteur presented his report to Minister Luhtanen in January He reported that, in several prisons, the new requirements introduced in the Act on Imprisonment and the available resources were not considered to be in balance. Nevertheless, he assessed that the long-term shortage of money was based on besides insufficient budgeting also on operational problems. By fixing those problems the level of expenses could be lowered, the income basis expanded, and the balance of finances achieved even reasonably quickly. The rapporteur made 28 suggestions. Among other things, he presented that the Ministry of Justice and the Criminal Sanctions Agency should re-evaluate on which prisoner groups the obligations of the new Act on Imprisonment would be reasonable to focus. The re-evaluation should cover both the most small-time offenders and the most professional offenders. A critical re-evaluation would unburden the resource pressure experienced in prisons. The Legal Affairs Committee of the Parliament of Finland reviewed the matter and stated that the Act on Imprisonment and the Act on Remand Imprisonment form a good and stable basis for the prison services. The Committee emphasised that the goals of the implemented reform should be adhered to. The other suggestions of the rapporteur were associated with the unification of the operational organisation of the criminal sanctions field, the financial and personnel administration, the improvement of the management practices and productivity, and the advancement of the occupational wellbeing with the help of a personnel management development programme. Development programme of the criminal sanctions field initiated in the autumn Minister of Justice, Ms Tuija Brax, made a decision on a development project of the prison services in June and commissioned a development of the organisation of the criminal sanctions field. The Criminal Sanctions Agency decided to unite these assignments into one project, i.e. the development project of the whole criminal sanctions field. Productivity programme The government productivity programme set a goal to reduce 325 person-years in the criminal sanctions field by the end of Several projects and measures have been started in the criminal sanctions field in order to achieve the productivity balance: Decreasing the prison population by restricting the use of the conversion sentence for unpaid fines, developing the sanction system, and improving the effectiveness of the sanctions. Decreasing the prison population to about during the planning period. The number does not include those placed in supervised probationary freedom, which would add up to about 200 prisoners according to a present estimate. If the pending amendment concerning the conversion sentences for unpaid fines was realised, it would lower the number of fine default prisoners from the current 130 prisoners to an estimated prisoners. Similarly, the number of prisoners serving a conversion sentence in connection with another prison sentence would decrease. Reforming the administration of the criminal sanction field. Arranging catering services. Improving the productivity of the work activity and related re-arrangements. Developing the prisoner transportation system. Organising substance rehabilitation services for prisoners. Co-operation Several established co-operation partners Besides the administrative branch of the Ministry of Justice, other important Finnish co-operation partners of the probation and prison services are the municipalities, the police and other authorities responsible for internal security, education institutions, substance rehabilitation and social work associations, parishes, and different peer support or voluntary groups. Education carried out in prisons is generally arranged by outside education institutions. Co-operation partners include, among others, vocational schools, vocational adult education centres, special education institutions, and general upper secondary schools for adults.

12 In order to follow the development of the different fields of work, prisons are support members in several trade unions. They also co-operate with activity centres and enterprises. Prisons purchase both individual and group form substance abuse services. In addition, AA and NA groups are arranged in prisons. On certain conditions, a prisoner may be placed in an outside substance rehabilitation institution during the prison term. in a co-operation project with the prison administration of the Ivanovo Region in Central Russia. In Namibia, Finland has long traditions and a good reputation. The Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Finland funded a pilot project on community service in Northern Namibia in which the Criminal Sanctions Agency also participated. Furthermore, Namibian officials visited Finland and were especially interested in community service. The support association Vapautuvien Tuki ry arranges family camps for prisoners and their families nationwide. The Finnish Red Cross arranges private and group meetings for prisoners. It also arranges parent child activity in some prisons. The Federation of Mother and Child Homes and Shelters develops the work with mother with children in Hämeenlinna Prison and Vanaja Prison. The Guarantee Foundation supports prisoners in managing their debts. Parish workers and volunteers arrange local meeting groups and spiritual groups as well as support prisoners individually. Outsourced services The release from prison is prepared together with the social services, the employment services, the Probation Service, other authorities, and third sector operators. Some prisons have outsourced social services especially in connection with the preparation for freedom to the municipalities or the Probation Association. In the release phase, the aim is to prepare the social situation after release (accommodation, livelihood, substance rehabilitation continuum). The peer support activity of the Kris Finland Association includes meeting released prisoners right outside the prison gates and supporting them to live without substances and crimes. Active international co-operation Following the international development of the criminal sanctions field and reviewing the best practices are essential parts of the activity of the field. In addition, assisting other countries especially in the neighbouring areas of Finland with the development of their sentence enforcement systems has traditionally been considered valuable. The co-operation with China is based on an agreement between the judicial administrations and it was renewed in The co-operation partner of the criminal sanctions field was agreed to be Hainan Province located on an island in the South China Sea. The colleagues from Hainan made their first contact with the Finnish criminal sanctions field when they visited Finland in the autumn Prisons participated in civilian crisis management through the EUJUST LEX mission (European Union Integrated Rule of Law Mission for Iraq). A Finnish prison administration expert worked in the mission headquarters in Brussels for a year. In addition, Finland took part in the realisation of a three-week training programme of two Iraqi prison directors. The prison directors studied the operations of Vantaa and Helsinki Prisons for one week. Finland still attracts interest The interest towards the criminal sanctions field of Finland has remained strong. The most important of the regular international meetings was held in November when the Director Generals of the Roundtable network assembled in Finland. Besides the current issues, the meeting discussed, among other things, the mental health problems of prisoners. The Director Generals also visited the new Turku Prison. In the meeting, the Prison Service Cross of Merit was awarded to the Head of Performance Information and Measurement Services of the Scottish Prison Service Ed Wozniak. Regular Nordic co-operation networks with annual meetings were upheld by, among others, prison building experts, probation service directors, heads of prison security, and prison education experts. Projects and expert exchange Most international development measures are carried out as projects. In the Republic of Karelia, the aim has been to improve the prison work activities in the fields of agriculture and wood industry. The use of community sanctions was promoted 10

13 Prison Service

14 Turku Prison moved from Kakolanmäki to Saramäki The new Turku Prison in Saramäki was taken into use in September. The move lasted from August to mid-october. Prisoners were transferred during one weekend in mid-september. The building of the prison was the most extensive project in the history of the present-day prison administration in Finland. The earth-moving work was started at the location in 2003 and the prison was completed in August The gross area of all the buildings is square meters. Turku Prison is the most modern high security prison in the whole country. Remand and sentenced prisoners of different age and sex with sentences of different lengths and with different security level requirements are placed in Turku Prison. There are 348 prisoner places of which 38 are for female prisoners. The number of personnel is around 280. The prison consists of four separate main buildings: the cell unit, the activity facilities, the administration unit, and the Prison Mental Hospital with 40 beds. The Assessment and Allocation Unit of the District Prison of Western Finland is also located in the new premises. The activity facilities include, among other things, a gym hall, a library, a chapel, a polyclinic, various classrooms, a metal workshop, a wood workshop, as well as smaller workshops (bookbinding, upholstery and silk-screen printing). In the prison, there is also an auditorium, which is used, e.g., in judicial proceedings. Top-level security Security issues have been taken into account in all parts of the planning and building of the prison. The prison is completely divided into sections, the underground passages are used for prisoner transportations between buildings, and there is no possibility of making visual contact from the cells to other cells or other spaces used by prisoners. Furthermore, the outdoor walking areas set deeper in the ground in the middle of the yard are separated from each other. The basic rule is that prisoner groups do not meet each other. The view from the cells only shows outside the prison premises and often just a restricted sector. The windows are no barred but they are made of extra strong safety glass. The prison consists of 21 wards each of which accommodates 13 to 19 prisoners. For example, remand prisoners, young offenders, prisoners in substance rehabilitation, and prisoners requiring daily assistance each have separate wards. The prison also has one of the two new high-security wards established in the country. Prisoners considered particularly dangerous are placed there. 12

15 The cell wards have an open kitchen area, a common room, and a sauna. All in all, 85 of the 263 cells are designed for two prisoners and the rest are single cells. Besides the special cells, the size of the cells is 12 square meters. In general, the cells are equipped with a toilet, shower, television, radio, DVD player, and speech connection to the ward control room. Order and security Less escapes yet more unauthorised leaves Escape and attempted escape are punishable by the Penal Code. In 2007, the number of escapes and attempted escapes declined. All in all, six escapes (14 escapes in 2006) and 3 (9) attempts were made from closed prisons. No prisoner escaped from inside the prison walls just as in the previous year. At the end of the year, four prisoners were at large. Besides the alertness of the personnel, the number of escapes was decreased by, among other things, the improved technical supervision in the institutions, which both increases the concrete chances of being caught and has a preventive effect. The personnel s professional skills to identify critical factors have also been further improved. On the other hand, the number of unauthorised leaves from open institutions increased. In 2007, there were 51 unauthorised leaves. Those are not considered escapes. Intensified prison order In recent years, particular attention has been paid to reducing violence against both other prisoners and the prison person- nel. The total number of prisoners isolated of their own will, i.e. the so-called vulnerable prisoners, was about 255. The decrease in the number is probably a consequence of the lower prison population rate and reduced threat. The number of reports on threats or acts of violence against the personnel was the same as in the previous year. The reports on acts or threats of violence are made by the employees who have been the targets of the violence. Severe breaches of the prison order, such as drug offences, escapes, and violent offences, are reported to the police. During the year, 154 reports of offences were made, which is 28% less compared with the previous year. If prisoners breach the prison order or the conditions of a prison leave, civilian work permit, or study permit, they may be imposed a disciplinary punishment. In 2007, disciplinary infractions were made and disciplinary punishment were imposed in the institutions. In contrast to the previous year, the numbers include both remand and sentenced prisoners. Prisoners may be segregated from other prisoners if they are seriously endangering the prison order. It is a measure used in order to maintain safety and not a disciplinary punishment. The threats posed by organised crime against the prison security and other prisoners were reduced, for example, by using a security data register and by intensifying the co-operation between authorities in the investigation of organised crime. The abilities of the personnel to recognise and prevent crimes in prison were improved by organising local training together with the police. Escapes, unauthorised leaves from open institutions, and prisoners at large in Escapes Unauthorised leaves from open institutions* Prisoners at large on average *In addition, three unauthorised leaves from rehabilitation institutions in 2006 and nine in Before 1 October 2006, unauthorised leaves from rehabilitation institutions were recorded as escapes. 13

16 Prison population in Prison population Average Fluctuation range In freedom before Released Released in total at the end daily prison of the prison the enforcement prisoners (including remand of the year population population yearly of the sentence prisoners) Principal offences of sentenced prisoners in (on 1 May) Property offence Violent offence Drunken driving Narcotics offence Other offences High-security wards were introduced Upon the decision of the Criminal Sanctions Agency, a ward separated from the rest of the prison may be established in a prison for security reasons (i.e. high-security ward). The rights of prisoners placed in high-security wards may not be restricted more than is necessarily required by the placement in the high-security ward. Prisoners may be placed in a high-security ward if there is a justifiable reason to suspect that they: 1) commit an offence referred to in chapter 50, section 1, 2 or 4 of the Penal Code as an offender or as a party thereto, 2) commit another offence, the most severe punishment for which would be at least four years of imprisonment; 3) escape or attempt to escape; or 4) will be subject to a release attempt. Prisoners may be placed in a high-security ward also if they have seriously endangered prison security or if the placement is justifiable in order to ensure their own safety. ers and, in Turku Prison, ten prisoners. The principal offences of the prisoners placed in the high-security wards have mainly been violent and narcotics offences. Activities Prisoners are obligated to work, study, or participate in some other activity in prison. The activities aim to promote the prisoners abilities to live without crime, improve their working and functioning capacity, and support abstinence from substances. In 2007, an average of prisoners participated in activities on weekdays which is less than in the previous year. The decrease is probably partly caused by the adjusted calculation method according to which an incomplete activity day (less than 7 hours) is no longer counted as one full activity day. On average 15% of the regular work and activity hours are passive hours consisting of, for example, transfers, trips to district courts, sick days, or prison leaves. A high-security ward established in Riihimäki Prison was opened on 1 August The high-security ward of Turku Prison was taken in use on 10 December In Riihimäki Prison, the capacity of the high-security ward is eight prison- In 2007, a total of prisoners worked, studied, or participated in activity programmes. 14

17 Prisoner activities on weekdays in 2007 (N=1 698 prisoners per weekday on average) Prisoners studying in 2007 (N=2 110) 37 % 9 % 17 % 9 % 5 % 3 % 9 % Production Real estate maintenance Work in open work colonies Domestic care Education Other activities Sick Hard to employ Other 18 % 33 % 27 % 22 % All-around education Vocational education Rehabilitating education Other education 5 % 6 % The figures are based on the activity hours which are recorded in the prisoner data system and for which prisoners are paid an activity allowance, wage, or expense allowance. Besides weekdays, work has also been carried out at weekends (29 prisoners in production at weekends on average and 106 prisoners in domestic care and real estate maintenance). Daily average of prisoners participating in work activities in 2007 (N=1 233 based on prison days) 27 % 12 % 3 % 9 % 21 % 28 % Production work Orientating work Domestic care (food and clothing maintenance) Work in open work colonies Cleaning, maintenance and repair work Civilian work and self-employed Rehabilitating programmes In total, 931 prisoners participated in substance rehabilitation programmes, activity programmes aiming to reduce recidivism, and other social rehabilitation programmes. The actual substance rehabilitation programmes were attended by 705 prisoners, the activity programmes aiming to reduce recidivism by 315 prisoners, and other social rehabilitation by prisoners. In addition, 50 prisoners were in outside substance treatment institutions or other rehabilitation institution. Prisoners participating in rehabilitation programmes in 2007 (N=2 666) Studying Education arranged in prisons is organised in co-operation with outside education institutions. Both general (basic education and general upper secondary education) and vocational upper secondary education are available. Prisoners can study in contact teaching groups or independently. University studies are also possible as independent distance learning. Approximately 70% of the studies are carried out in contact teaching groups. In addition, prisoners may be allowed to study in an education institution outside the prison if the conditions of the study permit are fulfilled. 43 % 12 % 2 % 17 % 26 % Informing and motivating substance programmes Substance rehabilitation programmes Placed in rehabilitation institutions Other social rehabilitation Activity programmes In 2007, the daily number of prisoners participating in education was 311. The number also includes 54 prisoners who had study permits to study outside the prison. All in all, prisoners participated in education in

18 Prison Health Care Services stabilised its activities The Prison Health Care Services was established as a separate unit in October Year 2007 was characterised by various practical arrangements. The administrative personnel located in Helsinki prepared their transfer to Hämeenlinna. Co-operation with the interest groups intensified In the spring, the Prison Health Care Services reached a cooperation agreement with the Oulu University Hospital and, in the autumn, made a similar agreement with the Kuopio University Hospital. The health care inspector attended a steering group of a project called Terve initiated by the Probation Foundation. As part of the project, the Teletext services of the Finnish Broadcasting Company YLE launched a campaign on the risks of drug use, infectious diseases, and health counselling. The campaign was primarily directed at prisoners. The medical director took part in international co-operation in the WHO International Conference on Prison and Health held in Trencin, Slovakia, in the autumn. The data collection and recording of the research called The Health, Working Capacity, and Healthcare Needs of the Clients of Criminal Sanctions Field was continued. The preliminary results were presented in the International Prisoner Health Conference arranged in Varna, Bulgaria, as well as in a Nordic Symposium on forensic psychiatry held in Oslo in the autumn. Furthermore, the Prison Health Care Services joined the WHO Health in Prisons network, which is an international prison health database in the Internet. ADHD common among prisoners In international studies, it has been assessed that 25 50% of prisoners are affected by attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), which dates back to childhood. This is ten times more than among the public in general. There are references, that ADHD is connected to repeated violent offences in adulthood. Substance abuse problems often occur simultaneously with ADHD (20 40% joint occurrence). In an ongoing Finnish study, ADHD features as well as dyslexia have been discovered to be highly overrepresented among prisoners. Their connection to the criminal career and other psychiatric disorders will be further studied. In prison, it is possible to get a doctor s referral to an examination in the Prison Mental Hospital for a suspicion of ADHD. It has been small-scale work but it is being developed actively. Psychiatric hospital care renewed The Prison Mental Hospital located in Turku moved to modern facilities in the new Turku Prison in Saramäki. The new facilities also have a women s unit with six beds. The second ward of the unit in Turku was closed for three weeks during the move. Besides the unit in Turku, the Prison Mental Hospital includes a unit in Vantaa Prison with 15 beds, which was closed for four weeks in the summer. In the Prison Mental Hospital, there were 383 treatment periods and inpatient treatment days. Six mental examinations and seven assessments of the level of dangerousness were made. From the practical point of view, uniting the Turku and Vantaa units of the Prison Mental Hospital was a good solution. 16

19 Community sanctions

20 Community sanctions Community sanctions served in freedom are a significant part of the sentence enforcement system. The enforcement of community sanctions is carried out in the municipality where the offender serving a sanction lives of works. The co-operation networks have a significant role in the enforcement. Besides related authorities, also private persons, e.g. contact people of the service places, are involved in the enforcement. Community sanctions consist of the supervision of conditionally sentenced young offenders, juvenile punishment, community service, and supervision of parolees. Community sanction work also includes providing expert statements, i.e. personal history reports, suitability assessments, and enforcement plans, at the request of prosecutors for the court of law. In 2007, the Probation Service enforced community sanctions or prepared expert statements of about clients with under 300 person-years. Individual programme called Five Discussions on Change was introduced Working methods and programmes reducing recidivism are used in the enforcement of community sanctions. The target is to continuously develop the quality of community sanctions. In 2007, the programme work proceeded according to a plan. Approximately five per cent of the clients, i.e. 250 clients, participated in an accredited programme organised by the Probation Service. With the help of the programme called Five Discussions on Change developed in Sweden the employees may use the skills of motivating interview and motivate the client to change as regards to offending and substance abuse. In 2006, the training of designated trainers was arranged first and, in 2007, the instructor training started resulting in 74 new instructors. A peer support network and feedback from recorded meetings support the instructors in the use of the programme. By the end of 2007, all in all 37 clients completed the Five Discussions on Change Programme. A study carried out at the Department of Sociology and Social Psychology of the University of Tampere supports the introduction and development of the programme. Particular attention was paid to assessing substance problems and increasing the use of substance programmes used in community service. The Traffic Safety Programme was taken to nationwide use and the use of the Steering Wheel Programme was also increased. At the moment, both of those programmes are only used in the enforcement of community services. The application of the programmes also to other community sanctions was taken under consideration. The development work was carried out in working groups consisting of the personnel of the district offices. In 2007, training on developing the quality of expert statements was also arranged for the personnel. Through the training of the principles of the handbook on suitability assessments completed at the end of 2006 and the quality assessment models were put to practice. A professional licentiate study on social work called The dialogical evaluation of the client employee relationship in the probation services written by Minna-Kaisa Järvinen was used in the regional training sessions on evaluative and systematic client work. Enforcement of community sanctions and prepared expert statements Police Prosecutor District Court Court proceedings Requests for supervision of conditionally sentenced young offenders in a year I 684 Prepared personal history reports I Enforced juvenile punishments I 23 Prepared enforcement plans I 62 Enforced community service sentences I Prepared suitability assessments I Prison Service Parolees ordered to supervision in a year I