Three prisoners serving whole-life terms for murder have launched an appeal against the decision to uphold their sentences at the European Court of Human Rights.
Jeremy Bamber, who has just had his parole request denied, Peter Moore and Douglas Vinter are three of the 40 plus people serving whole-life sentences in English and Welsh jails and count amongst the most notorious murderers known to the public.
Their crimes appalled ordinary people and the families of their victims and most people would like to see them and the other prisoners given whole-life terms, such as Ian Brady, die in prison.
However, whole-life sentences are rare in the rest of Europe. Portugal, Norway and Spain do not have any kind of life sentence, while every European country except Holland and England and Wales have fixed periods for their lifers after which release is considered.
Article three of the European convention on human rights prohibits “inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment” and most European countries have judged that telling prisoners that they will die in jail is exactly that.
According to the Lord Chief Justice Lord Judge, the whole-life order, the product of primary legislation, is reserved for the few exceptionally serious offences in which, after reflecting on all the features of aggravation and mitigation, the judge is satisfied that the element of just punishment and retribution requires its imposition.
According to the prisoners’ solicitor, the whole-life tariff is against all principles of international law, as it denies any possibility of reform or rehabilitation, while the removal of hope is inhumane for them and also potentially destabilising for the prison housing them. After all, if someone can never be released for ‘good behaviour’, what is there to deter him from committing further crimes on the inside?