But – in Austria - just how long is really "lifelong"? Surprisingly little research had been done to answer this question. Two researchers at the Johannes Kepler University Linz have, however, now addressed the issue.

Univ. Prof. Alois Birklbauer (JKU Institute of Criminal Law) referred to the Criminal Code and remarked: "By law, a life sentence does not necessarily mean being imprisoned until one dies. Conditional release is an option once 15 years have been served." At this point, the authorities must determine whether or not the prison inmate can be released. Later, a prisoner can also apply to be released on conditional parole.

Univ. Prof. Helmut Hirtenlehner (Institute for Procedural Justice) explains: "If approved, this is followed by a probationary ten-year period. Additional conditions may also be imposed, such as an alcohol ban or mandatory psychotherapy."

The two criminal law experts set out to find out just how long "life in prison" really is in Austria, including the factors that influence the court's decision to release a prisoner.

On Average, A Life Sentence is 21 Years
The two scholars analyzed 140 files. Of those sentenced to life in prison, 96% were men and murder accounted for 99% of the lifelong sentences. On average, each person had five release proceedings, meaning that a total of approximately 700 court rulings were reviewed.

The findings are that in Austria, "a life sentence" seldom means "until death". The average prison term is 21 years.

Birklbauer remarked: "Twenty years into their sentence, 56% of those sentenced to life in prison remain in prison. 25 years after sentencing, the number of prisoners drops to 27%, and by the 30th year after sentencing, it drops to 17%. 33 years after sentencing, 10% of the 'lifers' are still in prison."

More Severity in Sex Killing Cases
Although this means that in general a prisoner can be released from a life sentence, it rarely happens swiftly. Less than 5% of "lifers" are released after serving a minimum of 15 years. Hirtenlehner added: "The highest probability of being released is after serving between 17 to 23 years."

The prospects regarding conditional release do not apply equally to everyone. Individuals whose sentences are based on having committed a sexual homicide have the lowest chances of being released. Prisoners with prior convictions and prison sentences before their current incarceration are also less likely to be released, or they will be released later.

The Public Prosecutor's Office is Influential
What moves the court to grant a release? The convicted prisoner’s odds of a positive outcome are around 20%. The public prosecutor's office can greatly influence the outcome. The public prosecutor can appeal against conditional release and courts tend to support the public prosecutor's stance.

It turns out that during the release proceedings, psychiatric and psychological experts are only sporadically consulted. If a current expert report is commissioned (but this hardly happens in even half of the number of cases), they could majorly influence the court's decision-making process.

During release proceedings, prisoners are rarely represented by attorneys (in fact, in only 10% of the proceedings). Oddly enough, this does not actually benefit prisoners. When "lifers" have legal counsel, there is a likelihood that a new, updated expert report will be commissioned. During the evaluation process, the majority of these reports, however, may not be to the prisoner’s advantage. The result is that legal assistance does not necessarily support the release process.

Austrian Law Complies with Human Rights
A life sentence can only comply with fundamental and human rights providing the prisoner has a realistic prospect of being released during his or her lifetime, and given a justifiable assessment of being no danger to the public. Accordingly, the Austrian legal system - which grants "lifers" a prospect of release after serving 15 years - complies with these requirements. The fact that courts grant paroled release is testament to the fact that practices are compatible with these rights.

The study’s two authors add: "One should, however, question the considerable influence the public prosecutor's office has on the court's actual release decisions," especially when compared to testimony provided by the authorities where the prisoners had been housed. The institutions are more familiar with the inmates than the public prosecutor's office. Psychiatric reports about the prisoner’s relapse risk are also rarely commissioned, resulting in relying all too often on old, outdated reports.

If commissioned, updated expert reports could, however, greatly influence the court’s decision-making process. Both Birklbauer and Hirtenlehner added: "Overall, the courts could consider reviewing more early release cases, providing the future outlook is positive, and especially as Austria already has very high prison rates compared to other European countries. In criminological literature, the relapse rates by those sentenced to life is reported to be comparatively low."

The JKU’s Research Focus on Procedural Justice
Analyses like these are part of a new research focus at the JKU Faculty of Law. Under the term "Procedural Justice", faculty members and legal scholars focus on studying legal decision-making procedures, whereby both legal and empirical issues are the subject of consideration.