(CN) - The European Union's top court has ruled that stricter parole conditions introduced by the United Kingdom do not, in principle, amount to "a heavier penalty," clearing the way for Ireland to extradite a terrorism suspect.

The ruling from the European Court of Justice came after the Irish Supreme Court sought clarity on whether changes to the U.K.'s release-on-license regime could violate the suspect's rights under the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights.

The suspect, Sean Walsh, faces four arrest warrants for IRA-related offenses in Northern Ireland in July 2020. He challenged his extradition, arguing that it would subject him to harsher punishment than what was in place at the time of the alleged crimes.

This marks the second time the Irish Supreme Court has sought guidance from the ECJ on this issue.

The first ruling in 2024 from the EU's highest court established that an EU member state's judicial authority must assess whether a person's extradition could violate their rights under Article 49(1) of the Charter of Fundamental Rights, which prohibits retroactive increases in penalties. It further held that an extradition could be refused if there was specific evidence that the person would receive a heavier penalty than what was applicable at the time of the offense.

The latest ruling clarifies that the change in parole rules, which requires an offender to serve at least two-thirds of their sentence before being eligible for conditional release, does not amount to a retroactive increase in the penalty. The previous law allowed for automatic conditional release after serving half of the sentence.

The European court reasoned that, "even though the previous regime allowed for automatic release on license after the completion of half of the sentence in custody," the fact that the new law "leads to a hardening of the detention situation does not necessarily have to be regarded as entailing the imposition of a heavier sentence." 

The court distinguished between the concept of a "penalty," the sentence handed down, and measures related to its enforcement. It concluded that as long as the changes do not repeal the possibility of release or increase the severity of the penalty, they do not violate the fundamental right against retroactive harsher penalties.

This decision clears the way for the extradition of Walsh to the U.K., reinforcing the legal framework between the EU and the U.K. regarding the post-Brexit Trade and Cooperation Agreement, which came into effect on Jan. 1, 2021.

This ruling sets a precedent by clarifying that stricter parole conditions do not constitute a retroactive increase in penalty, as long as they do not eliminate the possibility of release or make the original sentence more severe.

This decision could shape future cases involving changes to sentencing rules and extradition processes between the EU and the U.K. post-Brexit.

Source: Courthouse News Service