As of 8pm on Saturday, more than 300 applications for early release from prison had been approved under a new ruling by the Council of Grand Justices allowing prisoners who have been given terms of more than six months for several petty convictions to pay fines in lieu of spending time behind bars.
The justices issued the new ruling a day earlier, under which those serving time in prison meeting the new requirements could apply for release from Saturday.
As the grand justices did not give any grace period for implementation of the new ruling, local prosecutors decided to allow those who meet the requirements to walk free even before judges determined the amount of fines they had to pay.
Ministry of Justice statistics show that 1,802 prison inmates are eligible to apply for early release by paying fines.
As of Saturday evening, 309 of the 858 applications sent by prison authorities from around the country had been approved, ministry officials said.
Of the released inmates, some paid fines, with the rest promising to pay later.
Inmates who fail to make payments as scheduled, will have to return to jail and serve out their terms or be put on a wanted list, prosecutors said.
Prison sources said some inmates had shown no interest in early release because they did not have the financial means to pay the fines.
The new measure became possible after the justices on Friday ruled as “unconstitutional” Article 41 of the Criminal Code that prohibited prisoners serving sentences of longer than six months for several petty convictions from paying fines to avoid incarceration.
Ministry officials said the ministry will come up with a draft package of amendments to the Criminal Code in line with the grand justices’ new ruling.
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