Statistics released by the country’s Ministry of Justice showed that the total prison population in England and Wales has reached 86,654 — just 1,500 places below the countries’ operational capacity.
Prison authorities said they faced an “unprecedented situation” and were working on emergency plans to boost capacity “should further pressure be placed on the prison estate.”
The figures show that a net of 700 people have been added to the country’s prison system over the last seven days, many of them people found guilty over their roles in the four nights of unrest that swept the country last week.
According to Britain’s Justice Ministry, 1,300 people had appeared before British courts over the riots by Wednesday and around two-thirds had been jailed. Prime Minister David Cameron has said he believes judges have been correct to impose tough sentences.
In one of the most eye-catching cases, two men were jailed for four years for attempting to incite rioting by posting messages on Facebook. Activists and high-profile attorneys have criticized the harsh punishments.
Criminal lawyer John Cooper warned that judges and magistrates had a duty “not to be influenced by angry Britain,” describing some of the sentences handed down already as “disproportionate and somewhat hysterical.”
