ABSTRACT
The number of prisoners aged 50 and over has risen and will continue to rise in many countries. Among elderly prisoners there are many who are seriously or terminally ill. Moreover, there are prisoners whose mandatory custodial term is longer than their actuarial life expectancy, meaning that they will not be released or considered for release within their actuarial life expectancy. Prisons are poorly equipped to deal with the problems of the rising population of elderly prisoners. Moreover, they are not the places to treat the seriously ill or to provide comfort for the dying; continued detention of these prisoners comes at enormous human and financial cost. Imprisonment after conviction by a court of law is a lawful deprivation of the right to liberty. However, in order to remain lawful, imprisonment should not undermine human dignity. This chapter draws together the core arguments of the book in order to emphasise that respect for a human being sufficiently affected by a decision, and the respect for the rule of law, require giving a fair chance to seriously ill and dying prisoners to regain their freedom by demonstrating that they have atoned for their crimes and can be safely released from prison.
