ABSTRACT
The Irish Prison Service is an executive agency within the Department of Justice and Equality. Its mission is to provide “safe and secure custody, dignity of care and rehabilitation to prisoners for safer communities” (Irish Prison Service, 2012a).Its management structure consists of a director
Overview 17 Introduction 18 Career 18 Changes Experienced 19
Punitiveness 20 Public Attitudes 20 Transparency 21 Politics 22
Personal Correctional Philosophy 22 Rehabilitation and the Role of the Prison 23 Structured Release 25 The Prison Environment 27
Problems and Successes Experienced 28 General Problems and Successes 29
Theory and Practice 31 Evidence-Based Corrections 32 Transnational Relations 32 General Assessments 33 Conclusion 33 Glossary 34
general, who reports to the minister for justice and equality, and eight directors who have responsibility for specific areas of prison policy and practice, including operations, health care, and human resources. The Irish Prison Service deals with male prisoners over the age of 16 and female prisoners over the age of 18. In Ireland, prisoners are held in 1 of 14 custodial institutions, 11 of which are classed as “closed” prisons. There are also two “open” prisons and one “semiopen” prison in this jurisdiction. In 2011, there were 17,318 committals to prison and a daily average number of 4,390 prisoners. The vast majority of prisoners that year were Irish, male, and serving sentences of 1 year or less.*
Michael Donnellan was appointed director general of the Irish Prison Service (Republic of Ireland) by the minister for justice and equality on December 5, 2011. He has a great deal of experience as a leader of corrections in the country. The interview with Michael Donnellan, director general, was conducted at a Dublin office of the Irish Prison Service. The interview conducted reflects an open and honest exchange between two professionals. Director Donnellan was very willing to share his experience and views on corrections. What follows is a verbatim account (with minor editing) of Director Donnellan’s views on the criminal justice system with a particular focus on penal policy and practice.
