A 78-year-old climate protester has had her prison term extended for being “unlawfully at large” when government contractors were unable to find the right-sized tag for her wrist, which would have allowed her to complete her sentence in the community.
Gaie Delap, a retired teacher and Just Stop Oil protester, was sentenced to 20 months in prison for her participation in a climate protest on the M25 in 2022 and was released last November under the home detention curfew (HDC) scheme.
She was recalled to prison just before Christmas. Because of a history of deep-vein thrombosis, she could not have a tag attached to her ankle and no wrist tag that fitted her could be found.
On Friday she learned that the time she must spend in prison had been extended. Her supporters said she was shocked to receive a letter delivered to her cell saying that her time behind bars had been extended by 20 days as it corresponded to the period of time after she was notified of her recall to prison. During that time she had been at home with her suitcase packed, waiting to be arrested and reincarcerated.
Initially, Delap was informed she would be released on 17 March but on Friday she was told her release date had been delayed until 7 April.
The news emerged days after the Guardian revealed that the prisons minister, James Timpson, wants to reverse the rise in the number of women imprisoned, with more tagged and sent to rehabilitation centres.
Twenty-five legal, women’s and prison reform organisations and researchers have written to the justice secretary, Shabana Mahmood, calling on her to use her discretionary powers to revoke Delap’s recall, find a suitable tag for her to wear, and launch an inquiry into the systemic failures that led to this situation. Signatories to the letter include the Howard League for Penal Reform, the charity Women in Prison and the Good Law Project.
The letter questions the effectiveness of HDC, which is intended to reduce the prison population and allow individuals to reintegrate into society under supervised conditions.
“This is not a matter of public safety, as Ms Delap has demonstrated full compliance with her curfew terms. Her recall serves no purpose other than to exacerbate the punitive aspects of her sentence,” the letter states.
“In the interests of justice, humanity and effective public policy, we request you intervene immediately. Let this case serve as a catalyst for reforming the tagging system and ensuring that such situations do not recur.”
Delap’s brother, Mick Delap, said: “How come it has proved so impossible to fit this normal-sized woman, who desperately wants to have electronic monitoring, with any one of the many different forms of monitoring available to the authorities? And how come there has been a deafening silence from the Ministry of Justice since Gaie’s return to prison, despite numerous appeals from her family, friends and her MP?”
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A family friend, Mike Campbell, added: “A flawed process led to Gaie’s recall. Her reincarceration represents a clear miscarriage of justice. She now faces double jeopardy, two punitive measures resulting solely from the unavailability of suitable electronic monitoring equipment. This is a cruel decision.”
Her solicitor, Raj Chada of Hodge, Jones and Allen, criticised the latest developments. “To further punish a 78-year-old woman for the incompetencies of the state is disgraceful,” he said.
A Ministry of Justice (MoJ) spokesperson said: “We are bound by law to enforce sentences passed down by the independent judiciary, this includes handing down additional days in custody when the law dictates.”
MoJ sources said that Delap was recalled to custody on 29 November but did not return to prison until police arrested her on 20 December, so the law considers she was unlawfully at large for this period and officials are obliged to ensure she serves these 20 days of her original prison term.
They added that there is no alternative tag available that would enable her to be released on home detention curfew.
English (US)