A model for the early compassionate release of prisoners in Australia

For many reasons, prisoners’ personal circumstances may change during their custodial terms. Their experiences in prison, such as their participation in a rehabilitation program, might have profoundly positive and life-changing effects on them. Yet other circumstances may arise that make their prison terms considerably more onerous than sentencing courts contemplated they would endure. For instance, they might develop a serious illness in prison, or a close relative could require their care. Notwithstanding these possibilities, there are few avenues for incarcerated people in Australia to be able to secure early release from prison for compassionate reasons. To address this shortcoming, this article recommends law reforms that adopt aspects of the early compassionate prisoner release model that operates in the United States of America’s federal jurisdiction, and expand the ‘release on licence’ process available to some prisoners in Australia’s federal jurisdiction. The article argues that established sentencing considerations in Australian law could provide justifications for early compassionate release from prison, and proposes grounds on which prisoners should be able to apply for early release.