General Discussion Italian Prisoners' Sentences Reduced for Every Book They Read in Jail

[Priscilla Tan]

Priscilla Tan submitted a new blog post:

Italian Prisoners' Sentences Reduced for Every Book They Read in Jail

Say what? Yes, you read it right. Apparently, Italian prisoners will get their sentences reduced by three days for every book they read while in jail. But, don't get too excited about this new scheme, as it comes with several requirements.

For instance, every book has to be more than 400 pages. Unsurprisingly enough, comic books and picture books don't count (sorry, Marvel, Tintin and Archie fans). And lastly, these Italian prisoners can earn a limit of 48 days off a year for reading books....

Continue reading the Original Blog Post

 

[Canadien]

Interesting concept by the Italians, and good that they're at least making them do something to earn their reduction in jail time, rather than just cutting their sentences outright. It's definitely unique in the sense that they're offering them an opportunity to reduce their sentence, but why reading? Is literacy a problem in Italian prisons? Of all the things they could get them do, community services, making license plates, etc, why would they choose reading? Excellent article though, Priscilla.

 

[Priscilla Tan]

Interesting concept by the Italians, and good that they're at least making them do something to earn their reduction in jail time, rather than just cutting their sentences outright. It's definitely unique in the sense that they're offering them an opportunity to reduce their sentence, but why reading? Is literacy a problem in Italian prisons? Of all the things they could get them do, community services, making license plates, etc, why would they choose reading? Excellent article though, Priscilla.

It is rather interesting, isn't it? Thank you for reading, Canadien!

 

[Elle]

Hmm. Sounds noble especially for non-violent and first time offenders. I imagine this scheme serves to decongest prisons with petty offenders and hopefully encourage literacy and creative thinking amongst inmates. The question of checks and balances arise. How will the prison authorities validate that the book was actually read cover to cover? Are those waivers subject to revocation if the prisoner commits an offence while still incarcerated? Still, a book is better than a knife for a prisoner to hold.