Where are all the hang and flog then brigade then?

I know a woman who was raped, it still affected her badly more than thirty years later. It's not for me to question the parole board's decision but, he is a very manipulative person and may have succeeded in convincing the board he was safe to release, when perhaps he isn't.

Part of the problem is that he's a serial and extremely prolific sex attacker noted for being highly manipulative and some anonymous person has decided for reasons that must remain secret that he's "No longer a threat". Add to that the fact that the department that's supposed to warn his victims that he's due to be released didn't do their job. Not surprising that the victims are all somewhat aggrieved and extremely disconcerted by the way this was handled by the powers that be.

Many additional victims that came forward at the time, were not included in the prosecutions case because the CPS already had enough they claimed to put him away for good. These people are now demanding to be taken into consideration as they believe that the whole thing is a screw up and he needs to be put back behind bars.

By the way in this case count me among the hang and flog brigade, I fail to see how such an appalling repeat offender can ever be judged safe to release back into society.

Normally, a convicted person who has received a prison sentence in excess of 12 months will spend half of the sentence in prison, and will be released to spend the other half on licence in the community.

Rape and murder are the two most serious crimes in the book. A murder victim is dead, and a mandatory life sentence applies. On conviction the sentencing judge decides on a minimum term to be served in prison, after which a parole board decides whether or not the prisoner can be released into the community on parole. Around 300 people a year are given a life sentence for murder, and currently there are 5,500 people in prison serving sentences for it. Around 200 are released on parole each year.

If the sentencing judge in a murder case considers that the circumstances of the murder are particularly serious, he or she can impose a 'whole life' sentence which means the convicted person will never be released. Currently, there are 59 people serving whole life sentences.

Most people acknowledge that rape is a particularly vile crime - the victim carries the horror of it for life - and the law recognises the fact by allowing a maximum sentence on conviction of life imprisonment. In practice, the sentencing guidelines mean that convicted rapists spend between 4 and 19 years in prison. Sentence length depends on many factors - the severity of an attack, whether extreme violence accompanied the rape, whether the attack was pre-meditated, etc., etc.

In the case in question, the man was a serial offender, he planned his offences, and used drugs to subdue his intended victims. He was convicted of 19 charges of drugging and sexually assaulting 12 passengers and one charge of rape, but it is known that he carried out many more offences - possibly as many as 500.

On conviction he was given an indeterminate sentence, which meant that it was up to the parole board to decide if and when he was considered to no longer be a danger to women, and released on licence. he has served ten years in prison.

The controversy surrounding his imminent release appears to centre around the fact that his victims were not given prior notice of it, that they were under the impression that he would be in prison for 'a very long time', and that he has not been tried for other offences where the victims had come forward.

I certainly don't know whether or not this man is still a danger to women - none of us do - but I can offer an opinion. My belief is that sex offenders are always going to represent some danger to society. the feelings that drove them to commit their crime or crimes in the first place are not simply going to vanish just because they spend time in prison. The extent of the danger to society when they are released depends entirely on their ability to a) understand the seriousness of what they did and to feel remorse for it and b) to control their desires sufficiently to stop them ever doing the same thing again.

Apparently he thinks "GOD has forgiven him". Yeah, really?

God has forgiven me

"GOD has forgiven him",and when released he can claim 'God spoke to me to punish these harlots',and the parole board will shrug their collective shoulders while another multitude of women pick up the pieces.

An "indeterminate" sentence was a joke played on his victims which has and is set to haunt them even more.

Apparently he thinks "GOD has forgiven him".

It wasn't GOD he raped.

The public glare will not allow this man to commit any more sex crimes. I hope he isn't allowed to cash-in from selling his story to the Sun or any other tabloid. The victims who were not listened to, might try to cash-in as well. Good luck to them as English justice has failed them.

The public glare will not allow this man to commit any more sex crimes.

Who is going to stop him should he decide to re-offend and why should we take that risk anyway.

Who is going to stop him should he decide to re-offend and why should we take that risk anyway.

He has spent 8 years in jail, probably will not want to go back there.

Aitchbee - If only prison was such a great deterant. There are many who have spent their entire lives with short spells free punctuated by longer spells inside. I can only hope that is not the case this time.