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Lasso pardons inmates to reduce overcrowding in Ecuador’s prisons due to the crisis in the prison system

Posted: 23 Nov 2021 13:22 GMT

The decrees are issued after a last riot registered between November 12 and 13 in the Litoral Penitentiary, which left 62 dead.

The president of Ecuador, Guillermo Lasso, signed two executive decrees to grant pardons to prisoners in the South American country and thus “reduce overcrowding in the detention centers”, given the crisis that the system is going through.

Through Executive Decree 264, the president granted the benefit to prisoners who have been sentenced for the infractions provided for in articles 383 or 386 of the Comprehensive Organic Criminal Code (COIP).

This includes those convicted of traffic violations, not involving death or injury; For example, driving a vehicle whose tires are flat or in poor condition, which is punishable by 5 to 15 days in prison or twice as much in cases of public transport, or for driving without a license, faults or exceeding speed, who has a sentence of three days in jail.

Meanwhile, with Executive Decree 265 the pardon is for prisoners with catastrophic or terminal illness, and for those who suffer multidrug-resistant tuberculosis and TB-HIV coinfection.

Both decrees make it clear that in no case does this benefit “extinguish the obligation of full reparation that each of the recipients of the pardon is responsible for” or “the fines or other non-custodial penalties imposed.”

It is also explained that to access the benefit, the prisoners must “have a final conviction” and “have no pending criminal proceedings against them.”

What are the roots behind the prison crisis in Ecuador (and who are the real culprits)

In the case of pardons for the sick, those sentenced for committing “imprescriptible crimes” and others classified in the COIP, such as genocide, against humanity, forced disappearance, kidnapping, human trafficking, embezzlement, illicit enrichment are excluded from the benefit. , bribery, organized crime, among others.

These decrees are issued after a last riot registered between November 12 and 13 at the Guayas Center for the Deprivation of Liberty No. 1, also known as the Litoral Penitentiary, which left 62 dead.

Less than two months before, there was another mutiny in the same prison, with a balance of 119 dead, recorded as the bloodiest mutiny in the history of Ecuador.

About the author

Donna Miller

Donna is one of the oldest contributors of Gruntstuff and she has a unique perspective with regards to Science which makes her write news from the Science field. She aims to empower the readers with the delivery of apt factual analysis of various news pieces from Science. Donna has 3.5 years of experience in news-based content creation, and she is now an expert at it. She loves journalism, and that is the reason, she moved from a web content writer to a News writer, and she is loving it. She is a fun-loving woman who has very good connections with every team member. She makes the working environment cheerful which improves the team’s work productivity.

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