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THE DEPARTMENT OF Justice has insisted that no decision has been made on whether to grant the convicted murderer Catherine Nevin temporary release to attend a college course.
In a statement released this evening, the Department said that a recommendations had been made regarding the 61-year-old’s attendance on an educational course but no decision has been made by the Justice Minister Alan Shatter.
Nevin, nicknamed the ‘Black Widow’, was sentenced to life in prison in 2000 for the murder of her husband Tom Nevin in 1996 at the Jack White’s Inn pub in Co Wicklow which the couple owned together.
The case is regarded as one of the most infamous in Irish legal history with Nevin also convicted of soliciting three men to kill her husband who she suggested was in the IRA in an attempt to besmirch his name.
In a statement, the Department said that while it was not policy to comment on “individual cases” it considered it necessary to issue a statement in light of the way the case has been reported “to clarify the position in this case and regarding life sentenced prisoners in general”.
The statement said: “Firstly as regards the case of Catherine Nevin, the Minister has not made any decision on granting temporary release. Recommendations have been made concerning attendance on an educational course but no decision has been made at this point in time.
A life sentenced prisoner is eligible for review by the Parole Board after serving 7 years in custody. Each case is considered on its individual merits and the Board take into account the full range of circumstances including the nature and gravity of the offence, the potential threat to safety, the risk of reoffending, the conduct of the prisoner and the prisoner’s engagement with the range of services on offer in the prison before making a recommendation to the Minister who then has the final decision.Of those who have been granted temporary release in the form of parole since 2005, the average period of imprisonment before parole has been 17 years.
This compares to an average of just over 7.5 years for releases dating from 1975 to 1984, just under 12 years for the period dating from 1985 to 1994, and just under 14 years for the period dating from 1995 to 2004.
It must be emphasised that each case is decided on its individual merits. There is no set tariff or minimum term of imprisonment as there is in the UK.
The statement came on foot of the Parole Board’s recommendation that Nevin be considered for day release to attend the course at the Dóchas Centre, where she is serving her sentence, before it considers a case for her release in June of next year.
In the statement this evening, the Department said that Shatter had previously indicated his intention to place the Parole Board on a “statutory footing”.
“This will help to strengthen the Parole Board and improve its functions. In that context, he is considering what role the Board will play and what powers it should have before bringing proposals to Government,” the statement added.
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And that was our Summer!
@C H: Not had for Spring, though!
Best of luck to Leixlip/Lucan in their walk today to save St Catherines Park! The gov and councillors doing nothing to destroy this amenity and the area of Leixlip
@C H: how else are things in the future CH? Because it’s still splittin the stones here. Any chance of next week’s Lotto numbers PM me for God’s sake don’t post ‘em.
@C H: Jeeze. There’s three months of actual summer still to go! There’s been more sun in the last week than you’d usually get in almost a month in Dublin. We’re not doing too badly.
Any longer and the Government will stick a Tax on it
@cormac o neill: Government blah blah ….do this….. blah blah do that …….change the bloody record.
@cormac o neill: enjoy the sun misery guts……
@cormac o neill:
Always someone who brings the Government into it
@cormac o neill: sap.
Journal will you please do a fact check and find out if there’s good drying out. Thanks
@Matty kinevan: yep there is did two loads of washing and dried the lot for free on the line between the garage and the ESB pole. Then made a pot of nettle tea friend of mine countryman showed me how to pick just the tips of the nettles from the ditch between ours and next field without getting stung. I mentioned to him an article read in the Journal this week and he said O yes my mother in law swore by it and I offered my mother a cup and she said God my grandfather swore by it so we all had some. Lovely. And free drying. Couldn’t be better unless found a way to make the washing machine work for free too.
@John O’Driscoll: I’ve made nettle soup a few times. Very nice, similar to spinach. Try a schneaky extension lead going into your neighbours gaff and run the washing machine off that. Bish bash bosh.
@Matty kinevan: what extension lead? It’s an 1892 model. My elderly mother cranks the handle and the drum and mangle goes round with my clothes in. The cast iron’s getting a bit heavy for her now she’s nearly in her 80s but I should get a few years more out of her yet. It’s feedin’ her in between washes is the cost. So you were saying about nettle soup like spinach again is there a recipe you can give me?
relax it its a sunday , chillax shoot the breeze
@Seamus Davey: What breeze?
@Paraic McDonagh:
Grand breeze here on curacloe beech
Was going to do a bit of sanding and varnishing round my mum and late dad’s home today but a friend who’s more church-going than me said ”It’s not a cow caught in a ditch. Relax it’s Sunday.” In Israel you can’t even press the buttons on a lift so suppose driving down to the village to get a few beers to split with my mother and sister is a mortaller in some views. Take me chances. Great excuse for lazin on a sunny Sunday afternoon. Sometimes religion makes a jot or tittle of sense.
Some belter of a day. Can’t wait to see all the cider heads with the big red raw heads in work tomorrow. “Bar garden weather bud”
@Science of beer: Big pint of water and two Solpadeines no probs mate. Make sure it’s not a small pint is all.
@John O’Driscoll: Before bed as in.
Its 23 here.
have your say