Regulations regarding electronic monitoring The Minister may prescribe by regulations the types of electronic monitoring device that may be used for the purpose of monitoring— the compliance of offenders with the above requirement and the compliance of persons with the temporary release requirements. Electronic monitoring. The Minister may, with the consent of the Minister for Finance, make such arrangements, including contractual arrangements, as he or […]
Restriction on movement order. Where a person aged 18 years or more is convicted of an offence specified below and the court which convicts him or her of the offence considers that it is appropriate to impose a sentence of imprisonment for a term of 3 months or more on the person in respect of the offence, it may, as an alternative to such a […]
Compensation The Criminal Justice Act 1993 provides generally, for orders of payment of compensation to victims. Payment of compensation may be a condition of an order under the Probation of Offenders Act. Certain other legislation provides specifically for orders for payment of compensation as a possibility on conviction. For example, the Criminal Damage Act makes specific provisions in this regard. The 1993 Act provides a […]
Personal Circumstances A person’s financial circumstance in the below context refers to the amount of their income, the value of their assets, the value of their liabilities and value of monies owing to them and other appropriate circumstances. The court is to ensure insofar as practicable, in imposing a fine that the effect of the fine on the person and his dependants is not significantly […]
Imprisonment Capital punishment, corporal punishment and imprisonment with hard labour are prohibited. Imprisonment is the harshest sentence that may be imposed. Below imprisonment, fines constitute the principal sanction. Some types of offences carry consequential disqualification or forfeitures, which may have serious consequences in the circumstances. The former distinction between penal servitude and that of imprisonment was abolished in 1997. In practice, there had been no […]
Conditions for Expiry The Criminal Justice (Spent Convictions and Certain Disclosures) Act 2016 provides for spent convictions. Where a person is convicted in one offence, either before or after commencement of legislation and the below conditions are satisfied, then the conviction is regarded as spent. The following conditions are applicable: the person must be a natural person over 18 at the date of the commission […]
Modernisation Fines are the most commonly used punishment/sanction. Traditionally fines have been specified by legislation. The level of monetary fines had become entirely out of date because of inflation in many cases. The Fines Act 2010 modernised the law on fines. In particular, it modernised the level of fines in the older statutes to allow for the fall in the value of money. Criteria In […]
General Once a person has been convicted of a crime or offence, the judge usually has very wide discretion in relation to sentencing. The relevant legislation will usually state the maximum fine or custodial sentence. The range of sanctions available will depend on the statute creating the offence and general statutory provisions on sentencing. In the case of less serious offences, a fine only may […]
Overview The Probation of Offenders Act allows the Court to dispose of an offence that is subject to punishment without recording a conviction. Under the Act, the Judge may dismiss the charge or discharge the offender conditionally. The purpose of the legislation is to try to avoid the recording of a conviction and allow a person who would otherwise be convicted, a chance to reform […]
Reform The 2010 Act defines financial circumstances which the court has to take into account in deciding the level of a fine a person must pay. This is relevant to determining the person’s capacity to pay. It is also relevant to granting an extension of time for the payment of a fine by instalments. The Fines (Payment and Recovery) Act 2013 further modernises the law […]
Community Services Orders Community service orders were introduced in the mid-1980s. A community service order may be made by any court other than the Special Criminal Court. The convicted person must be over 16 years. The offence must be of a type that in the opinion of the court is appropriate for community service. The legislation was extended so that orders may be made by […]
Suspended Sentence The Criminal Justice Act 2006 made formal provision for a sentencing framework. Where a person is sentenced to a term of imprisonment other than a mandatory term, the court may make an order suspending the sentence in whole or in part, subject to them entering into a recognisance to comply with the conditions imposed. It should be a condition of the order that […]
Overview The jurisdiction to bind a person to the peace or good behaviour is ancient and was recognised by statute in the 14th century. The Courts Acts provide that the jurisdiction may be exercised by the judges of the District Court, the Circuit Court and Superior Courts. The jurisdiction is most exercised in the District Court. Notwithstanding any other legislation where power is conferred on […]
General The Criminal Justice Act 2006 provides for antisocial behaviour orders. This is separate from the Children Act which makes similar provisions for behaviour orders in relation to children. A person behaves in an antisocial manner if he causes or in the circumstances is likely to cause to one or more persons who are not in the same household as the person harassment. significant or […]
Background Probation is an alternative sanction to custody. It is a significant feature of Irish criminal justice. The numbers of persons on probation generally significantly exceed the number of persons in custody. Probation legislation dates from the beginning of the 20th century. The Probation of Offenders Act provides an alternative to conviction Probation has a more informal, 19th century background. Voluntary societies sought to provide […]
Prohibition Vicinity Premises The court may make an order under the Criminal Justice Public Order Act providing that the person convicted may be prohibited from entering or being in the vicinity of specific premises which includes a licenced premises or seller of food. The vicinity is a distance up to 100 metres, not exceeding 100 meters. The period specified is not to exceed 12 months. […]
Drug Trafficking The Criminal Justice Act 1994 made provision for confiscation and forfeiture orders. Where a person has been sentenced or otherwise dealt with for drug trafficking offences, the court is obliged to determine if the person has benefited from drug trafficking. The court may choose not to make a determination if it is satisfied having regard to be means of the offender and circumstances, […]
Fines The Fines Act has standardised and indexed fines against inflation. It creates classes. A to E ranging from a €500 maximum to a €5,000 maximum fine. It indexed linked existing statutes, uplifting the permissible fine for inflation, by different multiples, depending on the era in which they were enacted. Where a fine has been imposed, there is provision for imprisonment for failure to pay. […]