Pictured above: Lisa Marie Zahra today would have been 26 – instead her life was cut short at just 15

This column first appeared in Malta Today

There are those who regularly advocate for prison reform so that even the most hardened criminals are treated “better”. Rather than prison being a place of punishment where they serve time for their crimes, locked away from society, they insist it should be a place of rehabilitation and that inmates should be provided with improved living conditions.

The most prominent voices on this issue are media personalities Andrew Azzopardi and Peppi Azzopardi who in August 2021 published their “100 ideas” towards a more humane prison. At the time the prison was being run under the tight (some would say the draconian) fist of Alex Dalli as prison director (between 2018 and 2021). An Ombudsman’s report published in January of this year found that he was indeed too extreme in his methods, “running the prison like a Gulag” and resorting to intimidating, degrading tactics against prisoners. However, he also managed to successfully eradicate drug trafficking in prison which used to be a horrific scourge.

Dalli was replaced by Robert Brincau (2021 – 2023) who also managed to keep drugs out of prison. But Brincau was also forced to resign after he was found guilty of injuring a man and brandishing an unlicensed gun during a dispute at a public beach.

The new prison director, appointed in 2023, is now Christopher Siegersma. In an interview he gave to the press when he was first appointed, Siegersma said “I believe prison should firmly and meticulously prioritise rehabilitation for offenders who have been sentenced for the first time. Helping long-time offenders is also crucial…but addressing young juvenile’s issues as quickly as possible prevents them from becoming institutionalised and stuck in a system that would see them re-offend so many times that life in prison, for them, becomes more convenient than life outside.”

Siegersma added that “We have a care and reintegration team made up of psychologists, care plan coordinators, sports coordinators, social workers and other professionals. We are even introducing yoga for therapy now as well. We’re also beefing up the job sector for inmates, because work is crucial during rehabilitation, and we’re in the excavation stage of a new rehabilitation wing that will serve as a place where inmates begin and end their sentences.”
No one can really argue with that kind of reasoning which sounds measured and balanced. It is also important that he made a distinction between the types of offenders. Under his leadership, the drug problem in prison has continued to be curtailed and in a recent radio interview he pointed out that, “Out of a sample of 7,000 drug tests over a period of one year, there was not a single case of drugs found at the Corradino Correctional Facility.”
That is only the prisoners’ side of the issue however. Way over on the other side, divided by a metaphoric barbed wire fence which is mired in grief, anger, deep sorrow and gashing wounds which will never really heal, are the families of murder victims.
This week, Winston Zahra, the cousin of teenager Lisa Marie Zahra who was murdered by Erin Tanti, her teacher at the time, with whom she was romantically involved, had this to say:
“I’m in disbelief at the fact that a certified psychopath who confessed to, and was convicted of, murdering my 15-year-old cousin has been granted prison leave on a number of occasions – allegedly partly as a result of lobbying and support from a well-known media personality.
While serving his sentence, he wasn’t just let out—he met a young woman, who is now pregnant with his child !! How does this happen under supposed supervision ?
I find it incredible that this is allowed to happen ! What kind of system do we have that protects the killer while ignoring the safety of wider society and the lifelong pain he caused the family ?
This isn’t justice. It’s a shocking disgrace and an insult to the memory of my cousin whose life was stolen from her by this same man.
The relevant authorities need to review this ridiculous system without delay. And before anyone starts throwing around comments about reforming prisoners, unless you have experienced a loss at the hand of someone like this then please don’t bother. I am all for prisoner reform in cases that involve certain crimes. But this wasn’t some petty crime – it was the murder of a 15 year old girl by a person who had the duty of care to keep her away from harm !”

The anguish can be felt in every single word and I doubt there are many people who would say that he does not have a point. How can we reconcile prison reform and a softer approach for such prisoners with the turbulent emotions and pain of the families who have been left behind to cope with an irreparable loss?

Because of the reference to a media personality, University lecturer and radio broadcaster Andrew Azzopardi was questioned by the press about his involvement. He has flatly denied pressuring authorities to give prison leave to Erin Tanti and also denied the allegation by (former Government official) Neville Gafa that he had introduced Tanti to the young woman who is now expecting his child. Prof Azzopardi said he had only helped Tanti to apply for an online university course.

Questioned about this issue, Prison CEO Christopher Siegersma denied any special treatment, and pointed out that, “All individuals in prison are granted prison leave in accordance with established regulations. It is important to note that they are never left unattended, ensuring their safety and adherence to protocols.”

The murder of Lisa Marie, which shook the nation, took place at Dingli Cliffs in 2014. After pleading guilty, Tanti was sentenced to 20 years, six months in prison in 2019. That means the Zahra family had to endure five years of a lengthy legal process until, just before the trial by jury was about to commence, Tanti filed a last-minute admission to receive a reduced sentence.

Can any of us who have not been through this ourselves possibly relate to what this family has been through? Not at all. We can empathise and show sympathy but only those who have suffered a similar tragedy can truly understand their shock and devastation at the initial news when it happens, and how each new development twists the knife in even further.

I wonder whether the criminals who carry out these despicable acts show any such empathy, or even remorse? When I attended the funeral of our dear friend Joe Carabott a few weeks ago, the senselessness of the whole thing overwhelmed me, as I am sure it overwhelmed the hundreds of family and friends who packed the church. He had spent 18 months in a coma with brain damage after he was beaten to a pulp in a savage attack by thieves who robbed his jewellery shop. During those long months, his condition deteriorated with excruciating slowness, until his body finally gave up.

We all wept for what he went through, and for what his wife, his children, his siblings and their families have suffered ever since that fateful night when he was found. Since it happened, there is one thing his family knew for sure: that along with the blows which rendered him brain damaged, he had also been dealt a death sentence.

Try as I might, I can never come around to the belief that perpetrators of these kind of heinous crimes should be handled with leniency. Call them sociopaths, psychopaths or whatever label fits, but I believe there are people who are beyond redemption; who are not fit to slip back into society as if nothing had happened. Through their actions they have taken their victims away from their loved ones before their time. Today, Lisa Marie should have been enjoying her 20s and Joe Carabott should be seeing his grandchildren grow up. The same goes for so many other innocent victims who have been murdered throughout the years, whether because of deranged jealousy in domestic violence cases or because of a lust for money.

Do we need prison reform? Yes, perhaps, for lesser crimes and for those who truly deserve it. But the idea of cold-blooded murderers being given kid glove treatment and being allowed to continue with their lives as if nothing had happened, is something most of us simply cannot stomach.