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Welcome to the EuroPris Knowledge Management System. The table below shows questions and responses from European National Agencies. Select a question for more information or use the filters on the left to narrow down questions based on Agency or Category.
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Introduction: In Slovakia under the Prison Sentence Execution Act, prisoners can be granted disciplinary rewards for long-term positive results reached in the treatment program fulfilment, fulfilment of work duties, fulfilment of activities relating the general development of the personality of the prisoner, performance of beneficial works outside prison or performance of an exemplary act. There are following rewards: a) acclamation, b) extraordinary visit permission, c) extraordinary phone call permission, d) permission of the parcel admission up to the weight 5 kg, e) financial reward up to 70 EUR, f) extraordinary prison vacation. On the other hand, for a due non-performance or violation of a duty or of a prohibition according to this Act or another disciplinary trespass, the prison staff can impose also disciplinary punishments: a) reprimand, b) prohibition of telephone call up to three months, c) prohibition of mostly two shoppings of groceries, things of personal need and other things except for the basic and other needs of personal hygiene and basic correspondence needs,, d) prohibition of the use of one´s own television set or radio up to two months, e) placement to closed unit outside of the working time up to 20 days, f) daylong placement to closed unit up to 14 days, g) placement to solitary confinement up to 14 days. At the moment, in Slovakia we are preparing drafts of legislative changes. We would like to get inspiration from the legislation of the disciplinary rewards and punishments in other counties.
It is open, but mainly: special extra communications, help for studies and participation in educational and cultural activities, reduction of disciplinary punishments, monetary awards and recognitions.
What kinds of disciplinary punishments can the prison staff impose to prisoners in your country?Aisolation, restriction of communications, privation of leaves, prohibition of common and recreational activities and admonition.
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No disciplinary rewards can be granted.
What kinds of disciplinary punishments can the prison staff impose to prisoners in your country?According to the Act on imprisonment (Swedish Code of Statutes 2010:610) a prisoner who violates the regulations and conditions that apply to the enforcement may begiven a warning. According to the Swedish Criminal Code the person is conditionally realesed, when two-thirds, but at least thirty days, of a fixed term of imprisonment has been served. If there are exceptional grounds against conditional release, it is postponed. When assessing whether there are exceptional grounds against conditional release, particular consideration is given to whether the sentenced person has, in a serious way, broken the provisions and conditions that apply to enforcement. The warnings a prisoners has been given will form a part of the basis when deciding if the conditional release shall be postponed.
There is not any reward system.
What kinds of disciplinary punishments can the prison staff impose to prisoners in your country?Disciplinary solitary confinement, in some cases conditional Fine up to 150 DKR Warning
In Latvia, according with Section 68 of the Sentence Execution Code of Latvia (hereinafter – the Code), the administration of the prison may apply the following incentives to convicted persons for good behaviour and conscientious attitude towards work or educational activities: 1) expression of gratitude; 2) permission to additionally use up to six telephone calls per year; 3) grant additional short-duration or long-duration visits, but no more than six additional visits per year; 4) in juvenile correctional institutions - permission to leave the institution for up to eight hours accompanied by their parents or employees of the institution; 5) recognition of convicted person as not administratively penalised before expiry of the time period laid down in the Code; 6) in open prisons - to leave the prison territory with the permission of the head of the prison once a month for up to 2 twenty-four hour periods, but during holidays - up to 5 twenty-four hour periods; 7) to temporarily leave the territory of a prison with the permission of the head of the prison for up to 3 twenty-four hour periods a year; 8) to temporarily leave the territory of the juvenile correctional institution with the permission of the head of the juvenile correctional institution for up to 5 twenty-four hour periods a year; 9) convicted persons involved in the programme for the treatment of addictions - the right to make video calls not longer than 30 minutes up to two times per month in the presence of a representative of the prison.
What kinds of disciplinary punishments can the prison staff impose to prisoners in your country?According with Section 70 of the Code, for the violation of the requirements of the sentence serving regime the following punishments may be imposed on convicted persons: 1) giving of a warning; 2) prohibition to use a personal TV set or a transistor radio (without voice recording functions) for a period of up to one month and have it transferred for storage at the warehouse of the prison or transfer it to the persons who transferred it in the use of the convicted person; 3) issuing of a reprimand; 4) prohibition to purchase food products and tobacco products in the shop of the prison for a period of up to one month; 5) prohibition to make the current telephone call for convicted persons serving sentence in a closed prison; 6) prohibition of telephone conversations for a period of up to 10 days for convicted persons serving sentence in a partly-closed prison; 7) prohibition to make the current video call for persons convicted under a sentence for deprivation of liberty for life (life imprisonment) who are serving sentence in a separate closed prison unit with reinforced supervision; 8) prohibition of the current visit; 9) placement of the convicted persons who are serving sentences in prisons in a punishment isolation cell for a period of up to 15 twenty-four hour periods; 10) placement of convicted persons who are serving their sentence in juvenile correctional institutions in a disciplinary isolation cell for a period of up to ten twenty-four hour periods. Women who are in prison with infants and pregnant women may not be placed in a punishment isolation cell. Only the convicted persons who have committed gross or systematic violations of the sentence serving regime may be placed in a punishment isolation cell.
With reference to KMS Query 180221 of 18 Feb, 2021: Disciplinary rewards and disciplinary punishments for persons serving prison sentence, I would like to inform you the following information: in accordance with the Enforcement Code, Article 243. Stimulatory measures applied to inmates (1) A convicted person who has a regulatory behavior, who participates and shows perseverance in work or is involved in educational, cultural, psychological counseling and social assistance activities, school education and training, can be applied to the following stimulatory measures: a) withdrawal ahead of term a disciplinary sanction; b) mention; c) permission to have additional telephone conversations; d) supplementing the right to receive parcels, packages of supplies and small parcels; e) supplementing the right to short and long visits.
What kinds of disciplinary punishments can the prison staff impose to prisoners in your country?(2) As a measure of stimulation, convicts serving sentences in open type penitentiaries may be allowed to travel outside the penitentiary on non-working days and holidays (3) In case the penitentiary administration finds a violation of the right guaranteed by art. 3 of the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, the head of the penitentiary shall apply, as a compensatory measure, one of the measures provided in paragraph (1) of this article. Article 246. Disciplinary sanctions applied to convicts (1) According to this Code and the Statute of enforcement sentence by convicts, the following disciplinary sanctions can be applied to the convicted person: a) the warning; b) the suspension of the right to parcels, packages of supplies and small parcels, except for the goods necessary for individual hygiene and medical assistance, for a maximum period of 2 months; c) the suspension of the right to short and long-term visits, for a maximum period of 3 months; d) the interdiction to live outside the territory of the penitentiary, in the case of the convict who benefits from the right to move without escort or accompaniment; e) disciplinary isolation of: - the convict detained in an open or semi-closed type penitentiary - for a maximum period of 15 days; - the convict detained in a closed type penitentiary - for a maximum period of 20 days; - the convicted women - for a maximum period of 7 days; - the convicted juvenile - for a maximum period of 3 days; f) the transfer of the convict from the system of re-socialization or, if sentenced to life imprisonment, from the facilitated regime in to the common regime of detention g) transfer of the convict in to the initial regime. (2) The application of disciplinary sanctions may not restrict the right of defense, the right to petition, the right to vote, the right to correspondence, the right to medical care, the right to food, clothing and minimum accommodation, the right for daily walking and the right to rest. 3) The sanctions provided in par. (1) letter b) and e) of this Article shall not apply to pregnant women and mothers caring for children in the age of up to three years. In the case of juveniles, the maximum terms established for the sanctions provided in par. (1) letter b) and c) are reduced up to one month and, respectively, up to two months . (4) Collective sanctions and physical sanctions are prohibited. Restraints means, as well as any degrading means cannot be used as a disciplinary sanction. (5) If the convict has committed for the first time a slight disciplinary offense, the head of the penitentiary, for the purposes of prophylaxis, will carry out an educational conversation.
Prisoners in England and Wales are encouraged to abide by the prison rules and to engage with the rehabilitative culture through daily contact with prison staff and by the use of an Incentives Policy Framework (www.gov.uk/government/publications/incentives-policy-framework). The framework is a key tool for incentivising prisoners to abide by the rules and engage in the prison regimes and rehabilitation, including education, work and substance misuse interventions – whilst allowing privileges to be taken away from those who behave poorly or refuse to engage. This policy sets a common framework with each prison in England and Wales having the freedom to adapt it to local circumstances. Annex C of the Incentives Policy Framework contains the key rewards that can be granted to prisoners.
What kinds of disciplinary punishments can the prison staff impose to prisoners in your country?A set of Prison Rules govern the operation of the prisons in England and Wales (www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/1999/728/contents/made). The offences for which prisoners can be punished are listed in Rule 51 and the list of possible punishments are contained in Rule 55. Serious offences can be either referred to the Police for criminal prosecution or to an Independent Adjudicator who is a District Judge. The Independent Adjudicator has the power to impose additional days onto the sentence of the prisoner through the forfeiture of remission, subject to the sentence that the prisoner is serving and the stage at which they are within that sentence. The Judge can impose up to 42 days for an offence. Poor behaviour that does not warrant a formal disciplinary charge can be dealt with by a review of the prisoner’s position in the Incentives Policy Framework and privileges removed from the prisoner. Information on the operation of the prison disciplinary system can be found at: www.gov.uk/government/publications/prison-adjudications-policy-psi-052018
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According to the Enforcement of Penal Sanctions Act in Slovenia prison governor may reward a convicted person for active involvement in realising their personal plan and respecting prison rules by granting the following privileges: - longer and unsupervised visits; - unsupervised visits outside the prison; - leave from prison accompanied by an authorised official; - unsupervised leave from prison, except to the place where they committed a crime; - unsupervised leave from prison; - partial or complete use of annual leave outside prison; - up to seven days of unpaid annual leave; - additional privileges within the prison.
What kinds of disciplinary punishments can the prison staff impose to prisoners in your country?In the Enforcement of Penal Sanctions Act disciplinary punishments are also defined. In Art 88 it is stated: »The following disciplinary sanctions may be imposed on convicted persons for committing disciplinary offences: 1. written reprimand; 2. assignment to another job for up to three months if the violation was job-related; 3. limitation of receiving postal items for up to six months if alcoholic beverages, illicit drugs or items suitable for escape or assault, or mobile phones are found in postal items or other communication devices; 4. solitary confinement of up to 21 days, with the right to work; 5. solitary confinement of up to 14 days, without the right to work.« Disciplinary sanctions shall be imposed by the prison governor or a person authorised by the prison governor, while in detached departments, such sanctions shall be imposed by the head of the detached department or a person authorised by the head of the detached department.
Rewards granted to prisoners as set forth in the Penitentiary Code of the Republic of Lithuania: 1) gratitude; 2) granting of one additional phone call; 3) granting of three additional long-term or short-term visits per one year; 4) early annulment of an imposed penalty for regime violations; 5) extension of outdoor time for max 2 hrs; 6) increase of the max amount of money allowed to an inmate to spend in a prison shop per month by the amount of one basic social benefit; 7) permission to minors to leave the establishment for up to 8 hrs accompanied by their parents, custodians, close relatives or other trustworthy persons; 8) granting of an additional short-term leave home within the territory of Lithuania; 9) for inmates having served 1 year of imposed sentence/ minors – 6 months of imposed sentence – transfer from an ordinary to a privileged group; 10) juvenile offenders who behave well may be allowed to go to a cinema, theater, concert, sports or other event outside accompanied by the penitentiary staff.
What kinds of disciplinary punishments can the prison staff impose to prisoners in your country?Disciplinary punishments granted to prisoners as set forth in the Penitentiary Code of the Republic of Lithuania: 1) reprimand; 2) reduction of the max amount of money allowed to an inmate to spend in a prison shop per month by the amount of one basic social benefit; 3) restriction to purchase personal items for 1 month period (except for hygiene and stationery items); 4) contribution to the prisoners’ social assistance fund in the amount of one basic social benefit; 5) inmates, who regularly violate or have aggressively violated the regime may be placed in a cell type premises for up to 30 days, juvenile offenders – for up to 5 days (this sanction may not be not imposed upon pregnant women; women with children and other inmates due to medical issues)
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In Austria the disciplinary rewards for prisoners are laid down by the national Penitentiary Act (Strafvollzugsgesetz, StVG). A prisoner who shows that he is cooperating in achieving the purposes of the penitentiary system shall be granted appropriate benefits upon his/her request. (§ 24 StVG). These privileges could be the use of personal equipment and sports clothing, the use of an own TV-set or radio as well as other technical devices, making music on their own instruments and lighting of the cell during a longer period of time. If a prisoner performs particularly well at work, he or she shall be paid an extra wage up to the maximum of the highest monthly remuneration remaining after deduction of the enforcement fee as well as the rate of the unemployment insurance contribution. The total amount of extraordinary remuneration granted to a prisoner may not exceed the double of this maximum within a calendar year (§ 53 StVG). A prisoner who distinguishes himself by special personal efforts or gives suggestions which can be beneficially utilized in the work enterprises may be credited with a monetary reward up to twice the highest extraordinary work remuneration (§ 53) as house money. The house money shall be at the disposal of the prisoner for the procurement of material goods and services in accordance with the provisions of the Penitentiary Act (§ 54).
What kinds of disciplinary punishments can the prison staff impose to prisoners in your country?In Austria the disciplinary punishments of prisoners are laid down by the national Penitentiary Act (Strafvollzugsgesetz, StVG). Penalties for misdemeanours shall include only one or more of the following (§ 109): 1. the reprimand; 2. the restriction or withdrawal of benefits; 3. the restriction or deprivation of the rights to dispose of the house money (§ 54), television reception (§ 58), correspondence (§ 87), visiting reception (§ 93) or telephone calls (§ 96a); 4. the fine; 5. the house arrest. According to § 111 benefits may be restricted or withdrawn for a maximum period of three months. Upon expiry of the period of restriction or withdrawal, they may be acquired again without the ordered restriction or anew under the otherwise required conditions (§ 24). The penalty of restriction or temporary deprivation of the right to correspondence, to receive visitors or to make telephone calls may be imposed only for abuse of this right. The right to receive television may be withdrawn or restricted for a maximum period of eight weeks, and the right to receive correspondence or telephone calls for a maximum period of four weeks. The right to dispose of the house money may be withdrawn for a maximum period of four weeks and limited for a maximum period of eight weeks. The right to receive visits may be withdrawn or restricted at most in such a way that the prisoner may receive no visits or only certain visits up to three times in uninterrupted succession at the otherwise scheduled times. If the right of a prisoner to dispose of house money is withdrawn, the amounts which would have been credited to him/her as house money for the period during which the withdrawal is effective shall be credited as a reserve. If the right to dispose of the house funds is only restricted, the amounts shall be credited as reserves instead of as house funds in accordance with the extent of the restriction. The right to correspondence with public authorities, legal advisors and guardianship offices and the right to receive visits from such persons and from representatives of these bodies shall not be affected by any restriction or withdrawal of the right to communicate by letter or to receive visits. The fine may not exceed the amount of 200 euros. It shall be withheld from the house money in reasonable instalments (§ 113). The penalty of simple or strict house arrest may be imposed only if aggravating circumstances prevail. House arrest shall not exceed four weeks (§ 114). During the period of house arrest, the prisoner shall be held in a special single room; in the case of prisoners held in solitary confinement, in minor cases the sentence may order that they serve the period of house arrest in their usual room. During such detention the prisoner shall be deprived of the rights specified in § 109(3) (see above) and of the privileges granted to him, unless in the case of simple house arrest individual ones of such rights or privileges are expressly maintained in the sentence decree in order to achieve the educational purpose of the sentence. When exercising outdoors, the prisoner shall be kept separate from others. The prisoner may be engaged only in work that can be performed in the detention room. If strict house arrest is imposed, at least one of the following measures shall be ordered in the sentence for the duration of house arrest: 1. Limitation of the time when the detention room is artificially lit; 2. Deprivation of work
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Finnish criminal sanctions agency- system does not include a disciplinary reward system as presented in Slovakia-model. Prison staff are not able to grant any disciplinary rewards to prisoners. Every prisoner in prisons basically has the same rights to visitations, the use of phone, the possession of personal property and access to prison vacations. No financial rewards are in use.
What kinds of disciplinary punishments can the prison staff impose to prisoners in your country?At first have to mention that prison staff generally does not impose any disciplinary punishments, the only person who imposes disciplinary punishments is the prison governor. The disciplinary punishments are all defined and listed in the Finnish Prison Law (in its 15.chapter at 4 §) and they are: “If a spoken or written reminder is to be considered inadequate, a prisoner can be given as an disciplinary punishment; 1) writen warning; 2) deprivation of rights; to participate in free time activities, the usage of money or other means of payment or the restriction of possession of personal property, these deprivations up to maximum of 30 days; or 3) a placement in solitary confinement up to maximum of 10 days The deprivation of rights cannot obstruct prisoners possibilities to maintain contact with the outside world”. Also, all the other disciplinary punishments, except written warning, can be given as probationary.
There is no regulated system of ‘disciplinary rewards’ in Belgium.
What kinds of disciplinary punishments can the prison staff impose to prisoners in your country?The Basic Law concerning the prison system and the legal position of detainees provides for a number of general disciplinary punishments, which can be imposed regardless of the nature of the disciplinary infraction: - reprimand; - restriction or denial, for a maximum period of 30 days, of the right to purchase certain canteen items, with the exception of toiletries and the necessary items for correspondence; - isolation in the accommodation allocated to the detainee, for a maximum period of 30 days for a first category infraction (the most serious infractions, such as intentional violation of the physical or psychological integrity of persons, deliberate damage to another person's movable or immovable property, etc.) and for a maximum period of 15 days for a second category infraction (infractions such as insulting persons in prison, irregular communication with a fellow detainee or a person foreign to the prison, etc.); - confinement in a punishment cell for a maximum period of 9 days for a first category infraction and for a maximum period of 3 days for a second category infraction. In addition, the above-mentioned Law also provides for a number of special disciplinary punishments, which have to be specifically related to the nature or circumstances of the disciplinary infraction. These punishments may be imposed for a maximum period of 30 days for a first category infraction and 15 days for a second category infraction: - denial of the right to possess certain objects; - denial or restriction of the right to use the library facilities, without prejudice to the right of the detainee to obtain information from the library that is intended for a course he is taking or that falls under the right to freedom to manifest religion or belief; - denial or restriction of contact with visitors from outside the prison; - denial or restriction of the right to make telephone calls; - prohibition to take part in cultural, sporting or leisure activities in a joint context; - prohibition to participate in joint work; - prohibition to participate in joint training.