Katsav poses no danger to public, prison shrink says

Former president and convicted rapist Moshe Katsav has requested a short break from his time behind bars. His eligibility may depend on which rehabilitation workshops he has attended since his incarceration.

By the beginning of September Katsav will have completed a quarter of his seven-year jail time, which enables him to apply for a 48-hour furlough. Prison officials are reviewing his request, Channel 2 reported on Wednesday.

The prison psychologist has affirmed that Katsav is not considered a danger to the public, opening the way for his short break. However, the former president is classified as a sex offender — a status that requires his participation in rehabilitation treatments. According to Katsav’s family, since arriving in prison the inmate has attended several workshops that, they say, meet the requirements for a temporary release.

“The feasibility for Moshe Katsav to leave for a break will be considered according to the relevant criteria,” the Israel Prison Service said in a statement to Channel 2.

If the furlough is approved it will only be after September 7, the report said, giving Katsav the possibility of leaving prison for Yom Kippur, the Sukkot holiday or the Simhat Torah festival later that month.

In April Justice Minister Tzipi Livni recommended against pardoning Katsav. The request for clemency was filed by Katsav’s family, not by him, Livni wrote to President Shimon Peres. The former president has yet to understand the severity of his actions and is far from expressing regret — as expected from someone asking for early release — she said, adding that the suffering of Katsav’s victims was greater than that of his family.

In 2011, the former president was sentenced to seven years behind bars and since then has been waging a campaign to get out of Ma’asiyahu Prison, where he is serving out his term.

He was convicted of rape, sexual assault and harassment of a number of female employees while tourism minister and president.

In May 2012, Katsav lost an appeal for a retrial, leaving clemency as his only option for an early release. During the same month he was granted a seven-hour furlough from prison in order to attend his son’s wedding.

In October 2012, he appealed to Peres for a pardon but before the president can examine a plea, it must be approved by the Justice Ministry.

Katsav, who continues to protest his innocence and has never publicly expressed remorse for his crimes, has asked to be released from prison on the grounds that he wasn’t given a fair trial.