Attorney General Victor Cespedes announced he would authorize the release of the 200-300 women from jail whose sentences have expired but remain incarcerated because they have not paid their fines. Former Mayor of Santo Domingo and current minister without portfolio, Rafael Corporan de los Santos, helped design the initiative, which will coincide with tomorrow?s International Women?s Day. During a press conference, Cespedes said that male prisoners who have served their time but have unpaid fines would also be released, thereby qualifying as many as 2,000 individuals. The plan to decongest the prison system also contemplates releasing hundreds more being held for misdemeanors. Authorities estimate, however, that 80 percent of the approximate prison population of 17,000 has never been sentenced.