A government memo leaked to RNZ suggests prisoners could be kept locked up past their release date if deemed a Covid-19 risk.
The Solicitor General has written to Crown solicitors and public prosecutors recommending measures to limit the risk prisoners pose to themselves and to the public during the pandemic.
The advice includes recommendations to decline bail for those who have tested positive for Covid-19 or are awaiting a test.
But the guidelines have been slammed by justice reform advocates who say they exacerbate the very risk they are designed to minimise.
Investigative Journalist Guyon Espiner reports.
We've since had a response from the Attorney-General David Parker.
His office says decisions on bail are the preserve of judges and that the Health Act allows for extended detention by order of the Director-General but no such orders have yet been made.
