The report reveals that the criminal sanctions field is facing changes. In the end of 2004, the extensive bill on imprisonment issues, which had been prepared for a long time, was submitted to the Parliament. Besides the great changes in the central areas of the Prison Service, it also causes a thorough organisation reform.

In 2004, the prison population did not grow. The most significant reason for this was the almost complete cessation of the enforcement of conversion sentences for unpaid fines caused by the problems appeared in the enforcement administration’s new data system. Nevertheless, the amount of sentenced prisoners has increased by 135 since the previous year. This was caused by the increase in the number of persons convicted of violent and drug offences. In 2004, the average prison population was 3,577. The figure has come up by 30% since 1999. The number of life prisoners was 104 in the end of 2004. The growth has been as much as 41% in two years time.

Prison security was slightly better than the year before according to the estimates made with the help of the used indicators. A total of 19 prisoners escaped from closed institutions whereas, in the previous year, the amount was 29 prisoners. The amount is the lowest in the history of the prison administration. Still, the situation is dimmed by the most violent escape in decades during which a prison guard was killed and a work instructor badly injured. Violence between prisoners seems to have increased further. The statistics compiled by the health care personnel include 156 cases of violence between prisoners. The increased violence is caused by, among other things, the more difficult situation of overcrowding in prisons.

In 2004, on average 58% of prisoners participated in different activities daily. The share of prisoners working has stayed nearly the same as the year before. There were on average 1,450 prisoners, i.e. 41% of the daily prison population, working. During the year, 1,665 prisoners were studying.

The considerable increase in the amount of drunken driving offences since 2003 had a noticeable influence on the amount of community service sentences. The number of enforced community services increased by 14% and the amount of service hours by 10% meaning that the amount of community services is in the same level with the peak figures of 1998. In 2004, the clients of all the district offices of the Probation Service added up to some 15,400. The number of persons serving community sanction was about 9,200. In 2004, the enforcement of 5,619 new community sanction cases begun. Of those clients, 82% came through court proceedings and 18% were parolees ordered to supervision.

The unpredicted increase in the number of community sanction clients, the decreased availability of support services due to the financial difficulties of the municipalities, and the diminished enthusiasm of the traditional service places for the work made it difficult to reach the set goals.

The juvenile punishment experiment started in 1997 expired in the end of 2004. The Juvenile Punishment Act entered into force on 1 January 2005 and the juvenile punishment was extended to cover the whole country. Drafting the Act and arranging the measures needed in the implementation of the Act required a great work contribution from the Probation Service during the whole year.

The annual report is available at: www.rikosseuraamus.fi/16927.htm