https://www.um.edu.mt/library/oar/handle/123456789/347 2026-06-05T21:39:15Z 2026-06-05T21:39:15Z Vella, Mary Grace https://www.um.edu.mt/library/oar/handle/123456789/146582 2026-05-20T08:31:32Z 2026-01-01T00:00:00Z

Title: From imprisonment to reintegration : an analysis of Malta's parole system Authors: Vella, Mary Grace Abstract: This article presents an analysis of Malta’s parole system, established through the Restorative Justice Act (2012) as a mechanism for the conditional, pre-expiration release of convicted offenders from incarceration. Rooted in the historical concept of parole d’honneur, parole in its current form constitutes a formal, legally enforceable contract wherein an offender’s early release is contingent upon their strict adherence to stipulated licence conditions. This post-custodial phase mandates community supervision aimed at sustaining the individual’s rehabilitation and reintegration. Parole acts as a crucial transitional mechanism, bridging the gap between total deprivation of liberty and unconditional freedom. Unlike remission, which provides a largely unsupervised and automatic reduction of the custodial sentence (generally at two-thirds of the term), parole is a more discretionary yet advantageous measure requiring the inmate to demonstrate a more proactive engagement to reform and desistance. The system aligns with evolving penal philosophies by extending beyond the purely retributive and incapacitative functions of imprisonment to embrace principles of rehabilitation and restorative justice. The research methodology employs a longitudinal analysis of the Annual Reports of the Malta Parole Board to analyse key operational metrics concerning parole uptake, including the balance between licence grants and refusals, duration of parole licences, offender and offense characteristics, and the standard conditions appended to parole licenses. Furthermore, the study quantifies the system’s effectiveness through its success, suspension, and revocation rates. While recognizing parole’s efficacy in lowering the probability of recidivism through supervised release, the analysis also addresses significant systemic challenges. The paper concludes with evidence-based recommendations for potential reforms and improvements in operational praxis to optimize the system’s impact on public protection and offender reintegration.

2026-01-01T00:00:00Z Scicluna, Sandra https://www.um.edu.mt/library/oar/handle/123456789/145083 2026-03-23T11:18:45Z 2025-01-01T00:00:00Z

Title: Double imprisonment : the trans experience in prison : issues and policy Authors: Scicluna, Sandra Abstract: The criminal justice system disproportionately affects transgender individuals, who face heightened risks of violence, discrimination, and inadequate healthcare within prisons. This paper investigates the unique challenges transgender prisoners encounter, emphasizing the intersectionality of their experiences with race, ethnicity, and socioeconomic status, While global data on transgender incarceration rates is limited, studies reveal a higher prevalence of sexual assault and other forms of victimization among transgender inmates compared to the general prison population. The paper aims to analyze these issues and propose reforms, using Malta as a case study for potential solutions. Theoretical frameworks like minority stress theory and intersectionality are employed to understand the complex social and psychological dimensions of transgender prisoners' experiences. Best practice examples related to placement with individuals with the same identity orientation, health access to hormone therapy, addressing trauma – both past and present, training of staff and need research are discussed.

2025-01-01T00:00:00Z Morgenstern, Christine Larrauri, Elena Bruckmüller, Karin Caenazzo, Luciana Canton, Rob Čepas, Algimantas Johnsen, Berit Snacken, Sonja Mair, George Scicluna, Sandra Ravagnani, Luisa van Zyl Smit, Dirk https://www.um.edu.mt/library/oar/handle/123456789/145050 2026-03-20T08:57:54Z 2013-01-01T00:00:00Z

Title: European norms, policy and practice Authors: Morgenstern, Christine; Larrauri, Elena; Bruckmüller, Karin; Caenazzo, Luciana; Canton, Rob; Čepas, Algimantas; Johnsen, Berit; Snacken, Sonja; Mair, George; Scicluna, Sandra; Ravagnani, Luisa; van Zyl Smit, Dirk Abstract: We now have evidence that there is a specifically European approach to key aspects of punishment. There is a pan-European rejection of the death penalty, a European approach to prisoners’ rights, and the Committee for the Prevention of Torture as a strong monitoring body, and we also share the idea that imprisonment must be used as ultima ratio (van Zyl Smit and Snacken, 2009). What we want to know is whether this approach extends to punishment and supervision enforced outside prisons – that is, to community sanctions as sentences and supervision measures before or instead of trial.

2013-01-01T00:00:00Z Scicluna, Sandra https://www.um.edu.mt/library/oar/handle/123456789/145035 2026-03-19T14:07:25Z 2016-01-01T00:00:00Z

Title: The mad, the bad and the pauper : help and control in early modern control in carceral institutions Authors: Scicluna, Sandra Abstract: This essay looks at institutions of confinement in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, including asylums, workhouses, and hospitals. Most of the illustrations are taken from research done on relevant documents of the time as well as criticism of these institutions both in the nineteenth century, when there was widespread reform in carceral institutions and by modern authors who have studied this period. When analyzing the development of punishment and confinement, one can infer four theoretical perspectives (Scicluna 2004). Durkheim contends that confinement exists to unite society (Walker 1991). Spierenburg (1984), on the other hand, writes that it is the changes in society that bring about change in confinement, moving from the more brutal to a gentler form of punishment. Foucault (1977) believes that confinement serves as a means to control the population, while Marxist theorists like Rusche and Kirchheimer (1939) see confinement as serving to control conflict in society.

2016-01-01T00:00:00Z