Crime Bill raises fears of ‘injustice’ in sentencing
The State watchdog said another key proposal — extending detention periods for certain serious offences to seven days — could be in violation of the European Convention of Human Rights (ECHR).
In a hard-hitting analysis of the crime bill, the IHRC was highly critical of Justice Minister Michael McDowell for rushing the complex legislation through the Dáil.
“The Human Rights Commission is concerned that, as with previous legislation in the criminal justice system area, adequate time is not being afforded to the commission or to the Oireachtas to properly consider matters of significant importance to the protection of human rights,” said IHRC president Maurice Manning.
The commission said the General Scheme of the Criminal Justice Bill 2007 was only referred to it by the minister on February 14 last and the bill itself was not published until March 15.
The report said the commission had major concerns on four key areas:
Greater use of seven-day detention of suspects.
Changes in the law on sentencing.
Changes to the law in relation to the right to silence.
Changes to the law relating to bail.
“The IHRC considers a seven-day detention period as a serious curtailment on a person’s right to personal liberty that warrants real cause and justification.”
It said the commission was concerned that the proposal raised the possibility that Ireland “is in violation of its obligations” under the ECHR.
The body said it was particularly concerned at new forms of mandatory minimum sentencing, whereby those in possession of more than €500,000 worth of drugs will automatically receive a minimum of 10 years, removing any discretion from judges.
It said proposals on restrictions on the right to silence had to be carefully circumscribed with robust safeguards, including access to legal representation during questioning.
The IHRC said the rationale for electronic monitoring of people on bail had not been made.
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