ABSTRACT
In France, the system of release from prison has been subject to much legislative amendment in recent years. Prisoners still benefit from significant periods of remission, yet conditional release (libération conditionnelle) is not as common as it should be, remaining a favour granted by a judge in recognition of the effort the prisoner has made to facilitate his rehabilitation. Politicians are nervous of promoting it, despite the evidence of its effectiveness, for fear of appearing ‘soft’ on criminals and of being seen to increase the risk that released prisoners may reoffend. Despite the strengthening of the judicial process, judicial practices have not been able to develop significantly the use of early conditional release as a safe way to return prisoners to society. Driven by a rising prison population, the government apparently prefers to revert to automatic early release on electronic monitoring — a move away from the traditional individualization of penalties.
