Department of Correctional Services Archives

South Africa’s parole system faces crisis due to criminologist shortage

By Ragheema Mclean South Africa’s parole system is grappling with significant challenges, primarily due to a critical shortage of trained criminologists within the Department of Correctional Services. A recent parliamentary briefing highlighted this pressing issue, revealing that the shortage of qualified professionals is a key factor delaying parole decisions. Currently, there is only one criminologist assessing parole applications for life-sentence prisoners, leading to substantial backlogs and raising concerns about the […]

25 September 2024

Local

Najwa Dirk granted parole after 18 years behind bars

By Ragheema Mclean The Department of Correctional Services (DCS) has confirmed that Najwa Dirk, who was convicted for orchestrating the murder of her husband, Cape Town music legend Taliep Petersen, will be released on parole on 27 November 2024. The Correctional Supervision and Parole Board (CSPB) approved Petersen's parole during a hearing on Wednesday, in accordance with Section 73 of the Correctional Services Act. Dirk, who is now 63 years […]

12 September 2024

Local

63 prisoners rearrested following jail break in Malmesbury

The Department of Correctional Services says it has re-arrested 63 out of 69 awaiting trial prisoners who escaped from Malmesbury Correctional Centre on Friday. It said the group overpowered officials at around 12:15. "The incident happened when officials were providing exercise to inmates. At the time, the centre had 451 offenders and 20 officials on duty," said Western Cape regional commissioner Delekile Klaas. "The escapees overpowered officials, took the keys […]

25 July 2020

Local

Correctional Services Dept conducts inspection of COVID-19 isolation, quarantine sites in KZN

The National Commissioner of Correctional Services, Arthur Fraser, has conducted an inspection of COVID-19 isolation and quarantine sites in Estcourt in the KwaZulu-Natal Midlands. Fraser’s visit is part of supporting all prisons to ensure that standard operating procedures to prevent the spread of COVID-19 are in place. The department has recorded 336 COVID-19 cases in five provinces. So far, no official cases of COVID-19 have been reported in KwaZulu-Natal. The […]

13 May 2020

Local

Correctional services records 3 new Covid-19 cases

The Department of Correctional Services says it has recorded three new Covid-19 cases, bringing the number to 172. In a statement on Thursday, department spokesperson Singabakho Nxumalo said recoveries were sitting at 85 after 24 officials from the Western Cape had recovered. The Eastern Cape continues to have the highest number of cases with 102 after 36 officials and 66 inmates tested positive. It has recorded 58 recoveries and two […]

8 May 2020

Local

Prison officials summoned by Lamola to address parole system ‘flaws’

High-ranking officials in the Department of Correctional Services and secretaries of parole boards have been summoned to an urgent meeting with Justice Minister Ronald Lamola to "address the flaws of the parole system". On Tuesday, the department released a statement indicating Lamola was taking action after high-profile child kidnap and murder cases were reported in the Western Cape in the past month. He echoed the concerns of South Africans around […]

4 March 2020

News

Correctional Services to engage community on remission of sentences

The Department of Correctional Services will be engaging communities to get the public’s input on the Special Remission of Sentence. President Cyril Ramaphosa announced a special remission on 16 December 2019, where some offenders had their sentences drastically reduced. However, President Ramaphosa said that those jailed for sexual offences and violent crimes would not be eligible for this special process. He said that such remissions are not new as former […]

11 February 2020

News

Pollsmoor inmates being transferred

The influx of prisoners continues to be a problem at the notorious Pollsmoor Correctional Services prison. The prison is currently holding almost double the amount of inmates than it can accommodate. Pollsmoor is currently housing 7,477 inmates, but it only has bed space for 4,336 people. After many long meetings with the department and many prison inspections, the Western Cape High Court in December ordered that sentence offenders are to […]

30 December 2016

Department of Correctional Services

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