John Reid cocks up yet again!

From the Daily Telegraph

Arsonist let out of jail by accident

By Stewart Payne
Last Updated: 1:46am BST 14/04/2007

An administrative blunder by prison staff led to a police hunt yesterday for an arsonist who was released after 30 days instead of 320.

Christopher Pocock, 53, was jailed for a string of attacks, including setting fire to a hostel with 17 residents inside.

A nationwide police alert has been issued for his recapture. It is understood prison staff at Camp Hill on the Isle of Wight misread court documentation.

A Prison Service spokesman said: "Christopher Pocock was released in error on Thursday.

"He was sentenced to 320 days but was given an indeterminate public protection sentence and should not have been considered by the parole board for release until early next year."

An investigation to find out how the error happened is under way.

Comment: There might just be a satisfactory explanation for the Prison Service mistaking 30 days for 320 days. The missing digit in the middle might have been a typo. It seems like a waste of resources for a police man hunt, given that the sentence is less than a year. For a string of arson attacks? This appears to be lenient. I am not a fan of the indeterminate public protection sentence. It allows the Parole Board to have sentencing powers which it is not meant to have.