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We campaign to bring an end to this ineffective and damaging sentence. Our aim is to have the OLR abolished and resentencing applied retrospectively to those currently serving an OLR.
This will ensure that punishment is just and proportionate and relates directly to the offence committed.
It is widely accepted that indeterminate sentences are unjust and inhumane. A similar type of sentence in England and Wales known as the Imprisonment for Public Protection (IPP) was abolished as being in breach of Human Rights. It has since been described as ‘irredeemably flawed’ and a ‘stain on the Criminal Justice System’.
Despite this, Scotland continues to operate the OLR.
The OLR violates the basic principles of justice and has no place in Scotland if it wishes to be a fair and progressive country.
The OLR (Order for Lifelong Restriction) is a sentence that can be imposed by a Judge of the High Court of Justiciary on serious violent and sexual offenders in Scotland
The OLR is a life sentence which can be given for a much larger range of offences, including a pattern of minor offences.
The Centre for Crime and Justice Studies published a report in 2022 which likened indeterminate sentences to psychological torture.
We are pushing for change with the Scottish Government. We need it to see how the OLR affects Scotland’s reputation as a fair and just Country.
Scottish Article 5 breach: 2024csoh47.pdf (scotcourts.gov.uk)
‘Worse than IPP’ – insidetime & insideinformation
Endless sentences ‘can be torture’ – insidetime & insideinformation
Time to reform “torturous and unfair” indeterminate sentences | Centre for Crime and Justice Studies
UN expert urges immediate review of discredited UK sentencing scheme | UN News
